Research Updates in Kidney and Urologic Health
Research Needs in Pediatric Kidney Disease: 2000 and Beyond
Last year Congress urged the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive
and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to develop and implement an interagency action
plan and to submit a report outlining specific actions taken to address
the special research needs of children and adolescents with kidney disease.
In response, NIDDK and the American Society of Pediatric Nephrology convened
a task force to review current research and identify research priorities
and barriers to progress. The report of the task force, Research Needs
in Pediatric Kidney Disease: 2000 and Beyond, is available from the
National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse.
The report evaluates the scope and impact of kidney disease on infants,
children, and adolescents. It reviews the causes of kidney disease in
children and lists current National Institutes of Health (NIH) research
programs addressing pediatric kidney diseases. The report then identifies
opportunities for future research in genetic and developmental diseases;
acute renal failure; immune-mediated diseases, including glomerulonephritis
and tubulointerstitial diseases; and chronic renal failure and its treatment.
The task force identified tools, methodologies, and resources needed
to effectively extract information that might improve the diagnosis and
treatment of childhood kidney diseases. These resources include genomic
and gene-expression technology, genetic and animal models, clinical databases
and therapeutic trials, and drugs and vaccines.
Finally, the task force noted a number of challenges and barriers that
must be overcome for continued progress in understanding pediatric kidney
diseases. Challenges include a dwindling pool of physician-scientists
trained in pediatrics and nephrology and barriers to collaboration between
NIH and industry.
To obtain a copy of this report call
the National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse at
1–800–891–5390. This report can also be viewed at www.niddk.nih.gov/fund/reports/nephrology/summary.pdf (PDF, 282 KB) on the Internet.
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