Depressive affect in incident hemodialysis patients.

Background: The prevalence of depressive affect is not well defined in the incident hemodialysis (HD) population. We investigated the prevalence of and associated risk factors and hospitalization rates for depressive affect in incident HD patients.

Methods: We performed a prospective investigation using the Patient Health Questionnaire 2 (PHQ2) depressive affect assessment.

Right TraC™ Post-Hospitalization Care Transitions Program to Reduce Readmissions for Hemodialysis Patients.

Background: Hemodialysis (HD) patients have high hospitalization rates. This nonrandomized trial tested the effect of a bundle of renal-specific "Right TraC™" strategies on 30-day all-cause readmission rates and, secondarily, 90-day readmissions and overall admissions among HD patients.

Methods: Twenty-six Fresenius clinics in West Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky participated in the interventions.

Genomic organization and comparative sequence analysis of the mouse and human FRS2, FRS3 genes.

The signaling adapter proteins FRS2 and FRS3 are implicated in the transmission of extracellular signals from nerve growth factor (NGF) or fibroblast growth factor (FGF) receptors to the Ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling cascade. This study presents the genomic sequence and exon-intron organization of the mouse FRS2 and FRS3 loci as well as their evolutionary conservation with their human counterparts. Both FRS2 and FRS3 contain 5 coding exons spanning over 7 kb of genomic sequence with similar exon sizes and organization.

Diabetes education and care management significantly improve patient outcomes in the dialysis unit.

Background: The incidence of diabetes mellitus, particularly type 2, is increasing in the general population. Similarly, the incidence of patients with diabetes mellitus who develop end-stage renal disease has increased concomitantly in the dialysis facility to 44% of patients starting dialysis therapy with diabetes mellitus as their primary diagnosis. The aim of this study is to determine whether intensive education and care management of diabetes could improve glycemic control, alter patient behavior, and reduce complications in the setting of the dialysis unit.