Gastrointestinal and renal excretion of potassium in African-Americans and White Americans.

Objective: Several studies have confirmed the remarkable observation that cumulative urinary potassium (K(+)) excretion is less in African-Americans than White Americans even when identical amounts of potassium are provided in the diet. This study was designed to examine whether this decrease in urinary potassium could be compensatory to an increase in gastrointestinal excretion of potassium in African-Americans.

Methods: Twenty-three young, healthy, normotensive participants of both sexes and races were placed on a fixed diet of 100 mEq per day of K(+) and 180 mEq per day of sodium (Na(+)) for 9 days.

Cardiac evaluation prior to kidney transplantation.

Kidney transplantation is the treatment of choice for most patients with stage 5 chronic kidney disease and end-stage renal disease (ESRD), offering improved quality of life and overall survival rates. However, the limited supply of available organs makes this a scarce resource. Cardiovascular complications continue to be the leading cause of mortality in the kidney transplant population, accounting for over 30% of deaths with a functioning allograft.

A case of simultaneous, biopsy-proven, classic, ANCA-positive Wegener's granulomatosis and anti-GBM disease, but without detectable circulating anti-GBM antibodies.

Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) is a systemic, necrotizing, granulomatous vasculitis of unknown etiology. Approximately 75% of cases present as classic WG with both pulmonary and renal involvement, while the remaining 25% of patients present with a limited form with either predominantly upper or lower respiratory tract symptoms. Ninety percent of WG patients have circulating anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA), and approximately 10% have both circulating ANCA antibodies and concomitant anti-glomerular basement membrane (anti-GBM) disease on renal biopsy.