This article is part of the “Innovations in: Kidney disease,” an editorially independent special report that was produced with financial support from Vertex.
ONEAlthough more than one in seven adults in the United States has chronic kidney disease, as many as 90 percent of them do not know they have it. If left untreated, the kidneys can be irreparably damaged. Poor diagnosis and progression of damage has led to increased incidences of serious kidney problems around the world, as Now Medical Studios and Jen Christiansen illustrate. But with greater prevalence comes greater scrutiny, which has led to an influx of new treatments. Tara Haelle describes how these drugs emerged from a renewed look at existing drugs for diabetes and cardiovascular disease, given that kidney health and these conditions are so closely intertwined.
There is also good news for expectant parents. In the past, OB/GYNs advised their CKD patients to avoid pregnancy—both because it could endanger their own health and because it was difficult for compromised kidneys to support a fetus. But as Cassandra Willyard writes, researchers have made important strides in helping such people have healthy pregnancies. Another area that has developed rapidly in recent years is the treatment of autoimmune kidney disease. As Charles Schmidt reports, new drugs for the deadly disease IgA nephropathy are here, and they’re allowing doctors to help patients who previously had few or no options. Now, however, the trick will be to diagnose them as early as possible.
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As helpful as medications can be in treating kidney disease, some medications aimed at other conditions can damage the kidneys or even cause them to fail. For hospitalized patients, balancing the risks and benefits of these medications can be particularly difficult. But, as Jyoti Madhusoodanan explains, researchers are creating a system that can flag those patients most at risk so they can be monitored and their care reassessed to avoid permanent damage.
The common goal of these new initiatives is to keep the kidneys as healthy as possible for as long as possible. Living with chronic kidney disease can be tiring, and people with kidney failure must make time for dialysis at least three to four times a week. Charlotte Huff spoke to three people whose lives have been dictated by their illness. These people’s stories paint a picture of resilience and determination. There are a number of ways to navigate this disease, and the prognosis is improving with each passing year.
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