[Association between iron deficiency and risk of major events in chronic kidney disease]
Iron deficiency (ID) is common in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) but remains under-diagnosed and its prognosis poorly documented in the absence of anemia. The aim of the study was to assess the relationship between ID and the risk of major adverse outcomes in patients with CKD.
[Acute immuno-allergic tubulo-interstitial nephritis due to amoxicillin confirmed by rechallenge]
Acute kidney injury is a common drug adverse reaction and may concerned antibiotics. We report a case of an acute renal failure due to amoxicillin occurring twice in the same patient. Two mechanisms have been described for amoxicillin, with an immuno-allergic origin observed in our case. The diagnosis, supported by kidney biopsy, was confirmed by rechallenge with this patient.
[Primary hyperoxaluria: results of a retrospective survey of the diagnostic practices of nephrologists]
Primary hyperoxalurias (PH) are rare and serious genetic diseases. Their prognosis is improved with early medical management. However, diagnosis often occurs at the end-stage of renal failure. To understand this delay, collecting real-world data on the clinical practices of nephrologists may be helpful.
[LUMIDIAL: feasibility of light therapy in hemodialysis, pilot study and real-life experience]
Sleep and mood disorders are common in hemodialysis, but the effect of light therapy remains unknown in this population.
Systematic review of mobile health applications in transplant patients
Poor medication management can lead to adverse outcomes for transplant patients, including acute rejection and graft loss. In recent years, mobile applications have been proposed as innovative tools to improve patient treatment management.
[Recent data on atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome associated with pregnancy, kidney transplantation or hypertensive emergency]
Les microangiopathies thrombotiques (MAT) sont un groupe hétérogène de pathologies caractérisées à différents degrés par une anémie hémolytique mécanique, une thrombopénie et une occlusion microvasculaire histologique. Les MAT peuvent se compliquer de multiples atteintes d’organe, principalement neurologiques et néphrologiques (définissant alors le syndrome hémolytique et urémique). La classification fondée sur la physiopathologie de la maladie a mis en évidence l’importance de la dérégulation de la voie alterne du complément dans les SHU atypiques (SHUa) (non-liés aux infections). Cependant, la physiopathologie et le traitement de nombreuses formes de SHUa dans des contextes spécifiques (tels que la grossesse, la transplantation rénale ou l’urgence hypertensive) restent mal caractérisés. Dans cet article, nous reprenons les avancées diagnostiques et thérapeutiques récentes dans ces trois formes de SHUa aux contextes spécifiques. Nous montrons les spécificités de ces formes et décrivons les enjeux actuels et futurs de leur prise en charge.
[Novelties for the management of cytomegalovirus after kidney transplantation]
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is the main opportunistic infection observed after kidney transplantation. Despite the use of prevention strategies, CMV disease still occurs, especially in high-risk patients (donor seropositive/recipient seronegative). Patients may develop complicated CMV, i.e. recurrent, refractory or resistant CMV infection. CMV prevention relies on either universal prophylaxis or preemptive therapy. In high-risk patients, universal prophylaxis is usually preferred. Currently, valganciclovir is used in this setting. However, valganciclovir can be responsible for severe leucopenia and neutropenia. A novel anti-viral drug, letermovir, has been recently compared to valganciclovir. It was as efficient as valganciclovir to prevent CMV disease and induced less hematological side-effects. It is still not available in France in this indication. Recent studies suggest that immune monitoring by ELISPOT or Quantiferon can be useful to determine the duration of prophylaxis. Other studies suggest that prophylaxis may be skipped in CMV-seropositive kidney-transplant patients given mTOR inhibitors. Refractory CMV is defined by the lack of decrease of CMV DNAemia of at least 1 log10 at 2 weeks after effective treatment. In case of refractory CMV infection, drug resistant mutations should be looked for. Currently, maribavir is the gold standard therapy for refractory/resistant CMV. At 8 weeks therapy and 8 weeks later, it has been shown to be significantly more effective than other anti-viral drugs, i.e. high dose of ganciclovir, foscarnet or cidofovir. However, a high rate of relapse was observed after ceasing therapy. Hence, other therapeutic strategies should be evaluated in order to improve the sustained virological rate.
[Malformative uropathies in children: epidemiological, clinical, therapeutic and evolutive aspects in an ivoirian hospital setting]
Congenital anomalies of the kidney and the urinary tract are a major cause of chronic kidney failure in children. Prevalence in paediatrics varies according to studies. The data being rare in the ivorian context, this study aims to describe these defects' epidemiological, clinical, therapeutic and evolutionary aspects in children in a reference hospital setting.
[Difelikefalin and treatment of severe pruritus associated with chronic kidney disease - Real-life retrospective study in a dialysis center]
Difelikefalin is to date the first and only specific treatment to be approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus (CKD-aP) in adult patients on hemodialysis.
[Withholding or withdrawing life support in nephrology: a perspective in the French-speaking background]
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) characterized by long duration, simplicity at beginning versus complexity at advanced stages. Hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis are renal replacement therapy allowing life extension, but comorbidities and frailty could be burdensome over time. The academic society, Société Francophone de Néphrologie, Dialyse, Transplantation (SFNDT), publishes clinical practice guidelines to optimize CKD treatment in this context, to support shared decision-making in the appropriate initiation of and withdrawal from dialysis, and to supervise end-of-life cares in the French-speaking countries.
[Prevalence of stages 3-5 chronic kidney disease in New Caledonia]
New Caledonia is a French territory located in the South Pacific Ocean. The prevalence rate of end-stage renal disease is nearly 3,000 per million inhabitants, making it one of the highest prevalence rates in the world. Preventing chronic kidney disease is a major public health issue. This article presents prevalence rates of chronic kidney disease (CKD) stages 3-5 for New Caledonia defined by a glomerular filtration rate estimated below 60 mL/min/1.73 m2. Estimation was assessed from data collected during two “Adult health barometer” surveys carried out in the general adult population. Therefore, our study assessed two prevalence rates: 7.8% [6.1; 10.1] and 5.3% [3.3; 8.5]. Those prevalence rates were two to four times higher than in mainland France which is consistent with the high prevalence rate of end stage renal disease treated in New Caledonia. Hence, CKD prevention is essential for New Caledonia.
[Management of immunosuppressive therapy after functional renal graft failure: results of a practice survey of French-speaking nephrologists]
The management of patients with kidney transplant failure (KTF) remains a complex process involving multiple stakeholders. A working group of the Transplantation Commission of the French-speaking Society of Nephrology, Dialysis and Transplantation (SFNDT) conducted a survey on the management of immunosuppressants (IS) after KTF among nephrologists at transplant centres and general nephrologists in France, Switzerland and Belgium between March and June 2023. We analysed 232 replies from 58 nephrologists at transplant centres and 174 general nephrologists, aged 43.6 (+10.6) years. In the first three months following KTF, nephrologists reported discontinuing antimetabolite, calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) and corticosteroid treatment in 83%, 39.9% and 25.8% of cases respectively. Conversely, some nephrologists reported that they were continuing to use CNI (14%) and corticosteroids (19.1%) on a long-term basis. The patient’s comorbidities associated with the discontinuation of IS treatment are cancer and opportunistic infections as KT’s complications and presence of diabetes mellitus at KTF, whereas humoral rejection encourages the IS to be maintained. Transplantectomy is proposed by nephrologists most often for graft intolerance syndrome (86.5%), more rarely to discontinue IS (17.6%) or in the absence of plans of new transplantation (9.3%). In multivariate analyses, the presence of a protocol in the centre facilitated the management of IS by the general nephrologists. The management of IS after AFG by French-speaking nephrologists is heterogeneous. Specific prospective studies are needed to establish new best practice recommendations, based on more robust evidence, which could encourage better adherence by nephrologists.
Mind the gap in kidney care: translating what we know into what we do
Historically, it takes an average of 17 years to move new treatments from clinical evidence to daily practice. Given the highly effective treatments now available to prevent or delay kidney disease onset and progression, this is far too long. The time is now to narrow the gap between what we know and what we do. Clear guidelines exist for the prevention and management of common risk factors for kidney disease, such as hypertension and diabetes, but only a fraction of people with these conditions worldwide are diagnosed, and even fewer are treated to target. Similarly, the vast majority of people living with kidney disease are unaware of their condition, because in the early stages it is often silent. Even among patients who have been diagnosed, many do not receive appropriate treatment for kidney disease. Considering the serious consequences of kidney disease progression, kidney failure, or death, it is imperative that treatments are initiated early and appropriately. Opportunities to diagnose and treat kidney disease early must be maximized beginning at the primary care level. Many systematic barriers exist, ranging from patient to clinician to health systems to societal factors. To preserve and improve kidney health for everyone everywhere, each of these barriers must be acknowledged so that sustainable solutions are developed and implemented without further delay.
[Nurse-assisted arterio-venous fistula cannulation during home hemodialysis: first results of the DIADIDEAL study]
We have launched a pilot study, called DIADIDEAL, to propose nurse-assistance at home for arterio-venous fistula (AVF) cannulation in home hemodialysis (HHD) patients. The aim of the present study was to describe enrollment of the patients and their nurses.
[Fibromuscular dysplasia of the renal arteries: what do we know in 2024?]
Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) is a rare nonatherosclerotic, noninflammatory vascular disease affecting mostly renal and carotid arteries and is the second most frequent cause of renal artery stenosis. The symptomatology is dominated by arterial hypertension due to the frequent involvement of the renal arteries and depends on the location of the lesions. Most of the cases are middle-aged women of Caucasian origin. There are two subtypes based on angiographic aspect: multifocal FMD (80% of the cases) and focal FMD (rarer with a more balanced sex ratio). Angioplasty of the renal arteries is generally disappointing with less than 50% cure of hypertension. It appears necessary to improve our knowledge of the FMD and to optimize the selection of eligible patients for revascularization with transdisciplinary collegial therapeutic decision.
[Argument for the annual monitoring of specialized biological examinations carried out in hemodialysis]
[Arguments for the screening of essential viral markers in the context of chronic hemodialysis patient surveillance]
[Improving pre-emptive access to the kidney transplant waiting list between 2017 and 2021: assessment of a regional program in Aquitaine]
Pre-emptive access to the kidney transplant (KT) waiting list remains limited in France, with only 3.9% of patients on pre-emptive KT and 5.6% of patients registered at the time of initiation of dialysis. A similar trend was observed in Aquitaine. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of a regional program in terms of access to the waiting list for patients initiating a kidney replacement therapy (KRT).
[Why is health literacy an essential component of health of individuals with chronic kidney disease]
Health literacy (HL) is the ability of individuals to access, understand and use health information to improve their health. It is a multidimensional and contextual concept, whose definition has been enriched over time. Considered both as a health risk factor and a skill to be developed by individuals, HL also depends on the healthcare system in which patients have to navigate, and on healthcare professionals’ awareness of this concept. In order to promote shared decision-making and thus individual empowerment in the healthcare, HL should be at the core of the concerns of nephrology care teams.
[Second wave of the repository of biological examinations in hemodialysis]
[Argument justifying the measurement of routine biochemical markers in hemodialysis]