| Check Out the New Features of AAKP
My Health™ |  |
AAKP My Health™ now offers new features to help users take charge of their health care. Users can now:
· Receive appointment reminders by email · Print emergency contact cards
AAKP My Health™ is a free, unique section of the AAKP website, www.aakp.org, that provides you with online tools to be the leader in your health care. With AAKP My Health™, you can:
· Track your lab results
· Log your medications
· List your healthcare team members
· Prepare information for doctor visits
· Test your kidney knowledge
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| AAKP Names New Executive Director |  AAKP has announced the appointment of its new Executive Director. Karen Ryals was selected following an extensive and thorough executive search. Prior to joining AAKP, Ms. Ryals worked for the United Cerebral Palsy of Tampa Bay, Inc. D.B.A. Achieve Tampa Bay, where she had many roles, including Chief Executive Office, Executive Director and Director of Program Services & Consulting.
"The American Association of Kidney Patients has a history of meeting the needs of our nation's kidney patients and their families, enriching their lives through education and advocacy," said Ryals. "I am honored to have been chosen to lead this organization which has contributed so much to the nation's chronically ill people, and to have the opportunity to take it to new levels in patient services and community outreach."
Ms. Ryals hold a bachelor's degree in Speech Pathology & Audiology from the University of Florida and a Master's degree in Speech Language Pathology from Florida State University. She's also served as an Executive Committee Member of the Children's Cancer Center in Tampa, Leadership Tampa, and the St. Joseph's Hospital Quality Review Board.
To speak with Ms. Ryals or for more information about the American Association of Kidney Patients, please call (800) 749-2257 or visit www.aakp.org.
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| Protective Shield for Organs Can Extend Life of Transplants | | A "protective shield" for transplanted organs that extends their life and helps prevent them from being rejected by patients' bodies has been developed. Researchers claim the treatment could double the time that organs last after a transplant. The treatment, which involves washing organs with a drug called Mirococept after they are removed from a donor, can reduce the damage caused by the recipient's immune system, the main reason for organs being rejected. The drug also helps to preserve the organ while it is outside of the body during transport between hospitals, reducing the chance of the transplant failing.
Results from a small preliminary trial in 16 patients have been promising, according to the researchers. They are now preparing to begin larger clinical trials in around 300 kidney patients within the next year. Although they have only tested the drug on kidney transplants so far, the researchers say it could be used in other organ transplants such as heart and the pancreas. The treatment could help to reduce the amount of powerful anti-rejection drugs that transplant patients need to take. |
| Still Time to Register for the Next AAKP Healthline Call |  The upcoming AAKP HealthLine call, titled I'm Always Tired...Anemia vs. Depression, takes place Wednesday, October 6, from 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. ET. The call focuses on the possible side effects of chronic kidney disease (CKD) - anemia and depression. Many of the symptoms of anemia and depression are similar including: fatigue, loss of appetite, feelings of sadness and lack of energy.
To register for this HealthLine call, please contact AAKP at (800) 749-2257. |
| Dosing Changed for Pediatric Transplant Drug |  Reacting to concerns about overdose risk, the FDA is issuing new dose recommendations for valganciclovir hydrochloride (Valcyte), which is used in pediatric patients undergoing heart or kidney transplants. An FDA spokesperson said the agency has not received any reports of overdosing related to the use of valganciclovir in pediatric patients.
The drug, aimed at preventing cytomegalovirus infection (CMV) in high-risk individuals, is given to children ages 4 months to 16 years based on body surface area and creatinine clearance. But children with low body weight, low body surface area, and very low serum creatinine could have a high calculated creatinine clearance requiring a dose of the antiviral approaching the maximum 900-mg dose used in adults. To minimize the potential for overdose, the FDA has set a maximum value for the calculated creatinine clearance, which will be reflected on the drug's label. |
| Post-Transplant Patients Off Steroids Have Fewer Cardiovascular Events |  Post-transplant patients who have been removed from a corticosteroid regimen have fewer cardiovascular events than those patients on steroids, increasing their graft survival rates and reducing early mortality, according to a new study. Corticosteroids are commonly given to post-transplant patients as part of an immunosuppressive regime to promote graft survival. But the steroids also cause harmful cardiovascular side effects such as increased blood pressure, cholesterol and weight gain.
Ten years ago, almost 80 percent of post-transplant kidney patients were discharged from the hospital on steroids. Now, according to United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) reports, less than 20 percent are discharged from the hospital on steroids. Chronic steroids have been removed from the drug regimen while maintaining similar graft survival outcomes. Researchers evaluated acute graft rejection and graft loss in 630 kidney transplant patients withdrawn from corticosteroids. They found the risk factors for rejection in the corticosteroid-withdrawn kidney transplant population are similar to those on conventional immunosuppression with steroids. |
| 'Learning About Living Kidney Donation' Webinar | |
Living kidney donation can be a complex topic. But it doesn't have to be! Join the Living Kidney Donor Network for a free webinar, "Learning About Living Kidney Donation." There are approximately 91,000 people on the kidney transplant waiting list. Yet last year, only 16,000 kidney transplants were done. The number of deceased kidney donations has remained steady for years. Doctors say the only way to increase kidney transplants is to increase the number of kidneys available. How? By increasing the number of living kidney donations. But many people don't know a lot about living kidney donations - or if they do - they are afraid to ask someone for a kidney.
The webinar will take place on October 12, 2010 at 8pm ET (7pm CT/5pm PT). There will be an opportunity to submit questions during the webinar. | |
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