Low-dose rapamycin (sirolimus) effects in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease: an open-label randomized controlled pilot study.

Background And Objectives: The two largest studies of mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor treatment of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) demonstrated no clear benefit on the primary endpoint of total kidney volume (TKV) or on eGFR. The present study evaluated two levels of rapamycin on the 12-month change in (125)I-iothalamate GFR (iGFR) as the primary endpoint and TKV secondarily.

Design, Setting, Participants, & Measurements: In a 12-month open-label pilot study, 30 adult patients with ADPKD were randomly assigned to low-dose (LD) rapamycin (rapamycin trough blood level, 2-5 ng/ml) (LD group, n=10), standard-dose (STD) rapamycin trough level (>5-8 ng/ml) (STD group, n=10), or standard care (SC group, n=10).

Dosing intervals and hemoglobin control in patients with chronic kidney disease and anemia treated with epoetin alfa or darbepoetin alfa: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Anemia is a common complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD). The approved dosing interval for currently available erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) is 2 to 3 times weekly for epoetin alfa (EPO) and every 1 to 2 weeks for darbepoetin alfa (DARB). However, clinicians sometimes use less frequent dosing in the interest of convenience.