Sexual Activity, Function, and Satisfaction in Reproductive-Aged Females Living with Chronic Kidney Disease.

Up to 80% of women living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) experience sexual dysfunction, though its link with sexual activity and sexual satisfaction is not well understood. Among older women with CKD treated with hemodialysis, the majority report sexual inactivity, though few describe sexual difficulty and most report high sexual satisfaction. Whether this applies to reproductive-aged females living with CKD is yet unknown.

Low incidence of de novo HLA antibodies after COVID-19 vaccination: A cohort study of patients awaiting kidney transplantation.

Background: Antibodies against human leukocyte antigen (anti-HLA Abs) are associated with an increased risk of allograft loss. Herein, we report the prospective follow-up for anti-HLA Abs formation in 103 patients with end-stage kidney disease on the waiting list for transplantation who underwent COVID-19 vaccination.

Patients And Methods: Sera were tested before and after vaccination using Luminex technology.

Progression of Kidney Disease in Kidney Transplant Recipients With a Failing Graft: A Matched Cohort Study.

Background: Few studies have assessed outcomes in transplant recipients with failing grafts as most studies have focused on outcomes after graft loss.

Objective: To determine whether renal function declines faster in kidney transplant recipients with a failing graft than in people with chronic kidney disease of their native kidneys.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

The Influence of Age on the Likelihood of Catheter-Free Fistula Use in Hemodialysis Patients.

Background: Clinical practice guidelines recommend arteriovenous fistulas as the preferred form of vascular access for hemodialysis. However, some studies have suggested that older age is associated with poorer fistula outcomes.

Objective: We assessed the impact of age on the outcomes of fistula creation and access-related procedures.

Outcomes of the First and Second Hemodialysis Fistula: A Cohort Study.

Rationale & Objective: Fistulas are the preferred form of hemodialysis access; however, many fistulas fail to mature into usable accesses after creation. Data for outcomes after placement of a second fistula are limited.

Study Design: Cohort study.

Multi-Disciplinary Vascular Access Care and Access Outcomes in People Starting Hemodialysis Therapy.

Background And Objectives: Fistulas, the preferred form of hemodialysis access, are difficult to establish and maintain. We examined the effect of a multidisciplinary vascular access team, including nurses, surgeons, and radiologists, on the probability of using a fistula catheter-free, and rates of access-related procedures in incident patients receiving hemodialysis.

Design, Setting, Participants, & Measurements: We examined vascular access outcomes in the first year of hemodialysis treatment before (2004-2005, preteam period) and after the implementation of an access team (2006-2008, early-team period; 2009-2011, late-team period) in the Calgary Health Region, Canada.

A Description of Advanced Chronic Kidney Disease Patients in a Major Urban Center Receiving Conservative Care.

Background: Conservative/palliative (nondialysis) management is an option for some individuals for treatment of stage 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD). Little is known about these individuals treated with conservative care in the Canadian setting.

Objective: To describe the characteristics of patients treated with conservative care for category G5 non-dialysis CKD in a Canadian context.

The Effect of Predialysis Fistula Attempt on Risk of All-Cause and Access-Related Death.

Whether the lower risk of mortality associated with arteriovenous fistula use in hemodialysis patients is due to the avoidance of catheters or if healthier patients are simply more likely to have fistulas placed is unknown. To provide clarification, we determined the proportion of access-related deaths in a retrospective cohort study of patients aged ≥18 years who initiated hemodialysis between 2004 and 2012 at five Canadian dialysis programs. A total of 3168 patients initiated dialysis at the participating centers; 2300 met our inclusion criteria.

Sudden onset of parathyroid hormone-independent severe hypercalcemia from reversal of tumoral calcinosis in a dialysis patient.

Background: Tumoral calcinosis is a rare manifestation of extraskeletal calcification, featuring large calcified cystic masses in the periarticular regions of large joints. In chronic kidney disease (CKD), this disorder is thought to evolve through a chronically elevated calcium-phosphorus solubility product leading to calcium precipitation in soft tissue. Treating tumoral calcinosis in these patients involves interventions to lower the calcium-phosphorus product such as reduction in vitamin D therapy and intensive hemodialysis regimens.

Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody Induction due to Infection: A Patient with Infective Endocarditis and Chronic Hepatitis C.

While antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) is often used as a diagnostic marker for certain vasculitides, ANCA induction in the setting of infection is much less common. In the case of infective endocarditis, patients may present with multisystem disturbances resembling an autoimmune process, cases that may be rendered even trickier to diagnose in the face of a positive ANCA. Though not always straightforward, distinguishing an infective from an inflammatory process is pivotal in order to guide appropriate therapy.

Hyperchloremic Metabolic Acidosis due to Cholestyramine: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Cholestyramine is a bile acid sequestrant that has been used in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia, pruritus due to elevated bile acid levels, and diarrhea due to bile acid malabsorption. This medication can rarely cause hyperchloremic nonanion gap metabolic acidosis, a complication featured in this report of an adult male with concomitant acute kidney injury. This case emphasizes the caution that must be taken in prescribing cholestyramine to patients who may also be volume depleted, in renal failure, or taking spironolactone.