Led By Children's Mercy, Experts Unveil Recommendations For "Best Practice" When Caring For Kids On Dialysis

KANSAS CITY, Mo., April 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Armed with more than a decade's worth of new research and data, Bradley Warady, MD, a physician at Children's Mercy Hospital, led efforts to update the "Optimal Care of the Infant, Child, and Adolescent on Dialysis" recommendations for providing care to pediatric dialysis patients. The recommendations were published online by the American Journal of Kidney Disease.

Dr. Warady is the Division Director of Pediatric Nephrology and Director of Dialysis and Transplantation at Children's Mercy Hospital. The 2014 publication offers new guidance on providing optimal care to infant, child, and adolescent patients on dialysis therapy, addressing the multidisciplinary approach needed for a patient population still going through significant physical and cognitive development.

"Outcomes have improved in the last decade, but morbidity and mortality rates remain unacceptably high," said Dr. Warady. "For the best possible outcomes, we need to target the total patient – their growth, neurocognitive development, quality of life, and risk for complications of our therapies. These updated recommendations reflect that approach to care."

Updating the guidance published more than a decade ago, "Optimal Care of the Infant, Child, and Adolescent on Dialysis" acknowledges recent advances in many aspects of pediatric dialysis care, with specific regard to cardiovascular health, cognitive development, quality of life, preparation for transplantation, and transition to adult care.

Children's Mercy: Redefining Care for Kids with Chronic Kidney Disease

Children's Mercy Hospital is proud to be at the center of improving treatment for kids with chronic kidney disease (CKD). For more than ten years, the Division of Pediatric Nephrology at Children's Mercy has led "CKiD," the Chronic Kidney Disease in Children study, the largest pediatric nephrology research study ever conducted in North America.

Under the direction of Dr. Warady, this landmark study aims to identify the factors that lead to the progression of kidney disease in children and to define the impact of CKD on the growth, neurocognitive development, health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and risk for cardiovascular disease in these patients.  This NIH-funded program recently received funding for an additional five years to permit long-term follow up of patients enrolled in CKiD from across the nation.

About Children's Mercy

Children's Mercy, located in Kansas City, Mo., is one of the nation's top pediatric medical centers. The 354-bed hospital provides care for children from birth through the age of 21, and has been ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of "America's Best Children's Hospitals." For the third time in a row, Children's Mercy has achieved Magnet nursing designation, awarded to fewer than seven percent of all hospitals nationally, for excellence in quality care. Its faculty of 600 pediatricians and researchers across more than 40 subspecialties are actively involved in clinical care, pediatric research, and educating the next generation of pediatric subspecialists. For more information about Children's Mercy and its research, visit childrensmercy.org or download our mobile phone app CMH4YOU for all phone types. For breaking news and videos, follow us on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.

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SOURCE Children's Mercy Hospital