Promising Drug Treatment Study Presented at National Kidney Foundation's Spring Clinical Meetings

 

March 25, 2020, New York, NY—The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) showcased this week a new study for a drug treatment to address metabolic acidosis in patients with kidney disease which significantly improved how patients felt and functioned.

 

“Effects of Veverimer on Serum Bicarbonate and Physical Function in Patients with Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease: Subgroup Analysis from a Randomized Trial” was showcased at NKF’s annual Spring Clinical Meetings, a live-virtual gathering this year due to the COVID-19 crisis.

 

Metabolic acidosis is common in patients with kidney disease, is harmful, and needs to be treated, according to the authors of the study. The study will help add to the available strategies to treat metabolic acidosis in patients with kidney disease and alleviate its harmful effects.

 

“In previously published studies of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) of various causes and with metabolic acidosis (too much body acid), veverimer increased serum bicarbonate, indicating improved metabolic acidosis, and improved how patients felt and functioned after 52 weeks of treatment.,” said Donald Wesson, MD, MBA, FACP, FASN of the Health and Wellness Center, Baylor Scott & White, Dallas. 

 

“The current study examined how well veverimer improved metabolic acidosis and/or how patients felt and functioned in the portion of patients with diabetes,” he said. “How well or if veverimer works in patients with diabetes is important because diabetes itself can adversely affect how patients feel and function and improvement of their metabolic acidosis alone might not improve how they feel and function.”  

 

Ongoing, longer-term studies will determine if veverimer treatment of metabolic acidosis yields additional health benefits and if these benefits are of the same magnitude in those with and without diabetes, Dr. Wesson said.

 

The important study was chosen from among hundreds of other discoveries presented at the Spring Clinical Meetings. 

 

The annual gathering of clinicians moved to a live-virtual meeting due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This necessary change will help ensure the safety of our patients, staff, volunteers and conference participants while still enabling NKF to provide the high-quality content SCM is known for in a new live-virtual format.  

 

For the past 28 years, nephrology healthcare professionals from across the country have come to NKF’s Spring Clinical Meetings to learn about the newest developments related to all aspects of nephrology practice; network with colleagues; and present their research findings. The NKF Spring Clinical Meetings are designed for meaningful change in the multidisciplinary healthcare teams’ skills, performance, and patient health outcomes. It is the only conference of its kind that focuses on translating science into practice for the entire healthcare team.  This year’s Spring Clinical Meetings will be a Live-Virtual Meeting due to the COVID-19 outbreak.  
 

Healthcare professionals can join NKF to receive access to tools and resources for both patients and professionals, discounts on professional education, and access to a network of thousands of individuals who treat patients with kidney disease.
 

In the United States, 37 million adults are estimated to have chronic kidney disease—and more than 90 percent are unaware they have it.  1 in 3 American adults are at risk for chronic kidney disease.  Risk factors for kidney disease include diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity and family history.  People of African American, Hispanic, Native American, Asian or Pacific Islander descent are at increased risk for developing the disease.  African Americans are 3 times more likely than Whites, and Hispanics are nearly 1.5 times more likely than non-Hispanics to develop end-stage renal disease (kidney failure).
 

The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is the largest, most comprehensive, and longstanding patient-centric organization dedicated to the awareness, prevention, and treatment of kidney disease in the U.S. For more information about NKF, visit www.kidney.org.