Purpose-Several options exist for management of clinically localized renal masses suspicious for cancer, including active surveillance, thermal ablation and radical or partial nephrectomy. We summarize evidence on effectiveness and comparative effectiveness of these treatment approaches for patients with a renal mass suspicious for localized renal cell carcinoma. Materials and Methods-We searched MEDLINE®, Embase® and the Cochrane CentralRegister of Controlled Trials from January 1, 1997 through May 1, 2015. Paired investigators independently screened articles to identify controlled studies of management options or cohort studies of active surveillance, abstracted data sequentially and assessed risk of bias independently. Strength of evidence was graded by comparisons.Results-The search identified 107 studies (majority T1, no active surveillance or thermal ablation stratified outcomes of T2 tumors). Cancer specific survival was excellent among all management strategies (median 5-year survival 95%). Local recurrence-free survival was inferior for thermal ablation with 1 treatment but reached equivalence to other modalities after multiple treatments. Overall survival rates were similar among management strategies and varied with age and comorbidity. End-stage renal disease rates were low for all strategies (0.4% to 2.8%). Radical nephrectomy was associated with the largest decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate and highest incidence of chronic kidney disease. Thermal ablation offered the most favorable perioperative outcomes. Partial nephrectomy showed the highest rates of urological complications but overall rates of minor/major complications were similar among interventions. Strength of evidence was moderate, low and insufficient for 11, 22 and 30 domains, respectively. * Correspondence: 600 N. Wolfe St., Park Building, Room 223, Baltimore, Maryland 21287 (telephone: 618-534-4942; FAX: 410-502-7711; hitenpatel@jhmi.edu). No direct or indirect commercial incentive associated with publishing this article.The corresponding author certifies that, when applicable, a statement(s) has been included in the manuscript documenting institutional review board, ethics committee or ethical review board study approval; principles of Helsinki Declaration were followed in lieu of formal ethics committee approval; institutional animal care and use committee approval; all human subjects provided written informed consent with guarantees of confidentiality; IRB approved protocol number; animal approved project number.References 51 through 88 can be obtained at http://jurology.com/. HHS Public Access METHODS Data Sources and SearchesWe report results from a broader systematic review. Data Synthesis and AnalysisAll studies were summarized qualitatively. LRFS was defined as the absence of any persistent or recurrent disease in the treated region of the kidney or associated renal fossa after a single, curative intent initial treatment. This definition included persistent enhancement of any treated mass, a visually e...

HAART was associated with a substantial reduction in HIVAN incidence. Additional follow-up will be needed to determine if renal damage in susceptible individuals is halted or merely slowed by HAART, particularly when control of viremia is incomplete or intermittent.

Background Stroke is the third most common cause of cardiovascular disease death in patients on dialysis; however, characteristics of cerebrovascular disease, including clinical subtypes and subsequent consequences, have not been well described. Study Design Prospective national cohort study, the Choices for Healthy Outcomes in Caring for ESRD (CHOICE) study. Settings & Participants 1,041 incident dialysis patients treated in 81 clinics, enrolled from 10/95–7/98, followed until 12/31/2004. Predictor Time from dialysis initiation. Outcomes & Measurements Cerebrovascular disease events were defined as non-fatal (hospitalized stroke, carotid endarterectomy) and fatal (stroke death) events after dialysis initiation. Stroke subtypes were classified using standardized criteria from the Trial of ORG 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment (TOAST) system. Incidence of cerebrovascular event subtypes were analyzed using time-to-event analyses accounting for competing risk of death. Clinical outcomes after stroke were abstracted from medical records. Results A total of 165 participants experienced a cerebrovascular event with an overall incidence of 4.9 per 100 person-years. Ischemic stroke was the most common (76% of all 200 events) with cardioembolism subtype accounting for 28% of the 95 abstracted ischemic events. The median time from onset of symptoms to first stroke evaluation was 8.5 hours (25th and 75th percentiles 1, 42 hours), with only 56% of patients successfully escaping death, nursing home, or a skilled nursing facility. Limitations Relatively small sample size limits power to determine risk factors. Conclusions Cerebrovascular disease is common in dialysis patients, is identified late, and carries a significant risk of morbidity and mortality. Stroke etiologic subtypes on dialysis are multifactorial, suggesting risk factors may change the longer one has ESRD. Further studies are needed to address the poor prognosis through prevention, early identification, and treatment.

Purpose-Clinical practice varies widely on the diagnostic role of biopsy for clinically localized renal masses suspicious for renal cell carcinoma. Therefore, we performed a systematic review of the available literature to quantify the accuracy and rate of adverse events of renal mass biopsy. (January 1997 to May 2015 for relevant studies. The systematic review process established by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality was followed. Nondiagnostic biopsies were excluded from diagnostic accuracy calculations. Materials and Methods-MEDLINE®, Embase® and the Cochrane databases were searchedResults-A total of 20 studies with 2,979 patients and 3,113 biopsies were included in the study. The overall nondiagnostic rate was 14.1% with 90.4% of those undergoing surgery found to have malignancy. Repeat biopsy led to diagnosis in 80% of patients. The false-positive rate was low (4.0%), histological and renal cell carcinoma subtype concordance was substantial, and Fuhrman upgrading notable (16%) from low grade (1 to 2) to high grade (3 to 4). Core biopsy was highly sensitive (97.5%, CI 96.5-98.5) and specific (96.2%, CI 90.7-100) when a diagnostic result was obtained, but most patients (~80%) did not undergo surgery after a benign biopsy. Among patients undergoing extirpation 36.7% with a negative biopsy had malignant disease on surgical pathology (negative predictive value 63.3%, CI 52.4-74.2). Direct complications included hematoma (4.9%), clinically significant pain (1.2%), gross hematuria (1.0%), pneumothorax (0.6%) and hemorrhage (0.4%).Conclusions-Diagnostic accuracy was generally high for biopsy of localized renal masses with a low complication rate, but the nondiagnostic rate and negative predictive value were concerning. Renal mass sampling should be used judiciously as further research will determine its true clinical utility. *Correspondence: 600 N. Wolfe St., Park Building, Room 223, Baltimore, Maryland 21207 (telephone: 610-534-4942; FAX: 410-502-7711; hitenpatel@jhmi.edu). No direct or indirect commercial incentive associated with publishing this article. Editor's Note:This article is the first of 5 published in this issue for which category 1 CME credits can be earned. Instructions for obtaining credits are given with the questions on pages 1628 and 1629. HHS Public Access MATERIALS AND METHODSThe methods of this systematic review follow the AHRQ Methods Guide for Effectiveness and Comparative Effectiveness Reviews. 9 In an open process representatives of various stakeholder groups developed Key Questions, which are posted on the AHRQ web site for public comments (www.effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov). The final review protocol was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42015015878, fig. 1). MEDLINE, Embase and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched from January 1, 1997 through May 1, 2015.The systematic review focused on 3 major topics, of which 1 topic included 2 questions on renal mass sampling for masses suspicious for stage I or II RCC. 1) What is the accuracy (eg sensitivit...

Background and objectives Patients of all ages undergoing hemodialysis (HD) have a high prevalence of cognitive impairment and worse cognitive function than healthy controls, and those with dementia are at high risk of death. Frailty has been associated with poor cognitive function in older adults without kidney disease. We hypothesized that frailty might also be associated with poor cognitive function in adults of all ages undergoing HD.Design, setting, participants, & measurements At HD initiation, 324 adults enrolled (November 2008 to July 2012) in a longitudinal cohort study (Predictors of Arrhythmic and Cardiovascular Risk in ESRD) were classified into three groups (frail, intermediately frail, and nonfrail) based on the Fried frailty phenotype. Global cognitive function (3MS) and speed/attention (Trail Making Tests A and B [TMTA and TMTB, respectively]) were assessed at cohort entry and 1-year follow-up. Associations between frailty and cognitive function (at cohort entry and 1-year follow-up) were evaluated in adjusted (for sex, age, race, body mass index, education, depression and comorbidity at baseline) linear (3MS, TMTA) and Tobit (TMTB) regression models.Results At cohort entry, the mean age was 54.8 years (SD 13.3), 56.5% were men, and 72.8% were black. The prevalence of frailty and intermediate frailty were 34.0% and 37.7%, respectively. The mean 3MS was 89.8 (SD 7.6), TMTA was 55.4 (SD 29), and TMTB was 161 (SD 83). Frailty was independently associated with lower cognitive function at cohort entry for all three measures (3MS: 22.4 points; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 24.2 to 20.5; P=0.01; TMTA: 12.1 seconds; 95% CI, 4.7 to 19.4; P,0.001; and TMTB: 33.2 seconds; 95% CI, 9.9 to 56.4; P=0.01; all tests for trend, P,0.001) and with worse 3MS at 1-year follow-up (22.8 points; 95% CI, 25.4 to 20.2; P=0.03). ConclusionsIn adult incident HD patients, frailty is associated with worse cognitive function, particularly global cognitive function (3MS).

Steroid use after liver transplantation (LT) has been associated with diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity, and hepatitis C (HCV) recurrence. We performed meta-analysis and meta-regression of 30 publications representing 19 randomized trials that compared steroid-free with steroid-based immunosuppression (IS). There were no differences in death, graft loss, and infection. Steroid-free recipients demonstrated a trend toward reduced hypertension [relative risk (RR) 0.84, P ϭ 0.08], and statistically significant decreases in cholesterol (standard mean difference Ϫ0.41, P Ͻ 0.001) and cytomegalovirus (RR 0.52, P ϭ 0.001). In studies where steroids were replaced by another IS agent, the risks of diabetes (RR 0.29, P Ͻ 0.001), rejection (RR 0.68, P ϭ 0.03), and severe rejection (RR 0.37, P ϭ 0.001) were markedly lower in steroid-free arms. In studies in which steroids were not replaced, rejection rates were higher in steroid-free arms (RR 1.31, P ϭ 0.02) and reduction of diabetes was attenuated (RR 0.74, P ϭ 0.2). HCV recurrence was lower with steroid avoidance and, although no individual trial reached statistical significance, meta-analysis demonstrated this important effect (RR 0.90, P ϭ 0.03). However, we emphasize the heterogeneity of trials performed to date and, as such, do not recommend basing clinical guidelines on our conclusions. We believe that a large, multicenter trial will better define the role of steroid-free regimens in LT. Liver Transpl 14:512-525, 2008. © 2008 AASLD. The use of corticosteroids has historically been the mainstay of decreasing rejection risk following liver transplantation (LT). Steroids, however, are associated with a multitude of side effects, including diabetes, hypertension, altered lipid metabolism, decreased wound healing, decreased immune defense against infection, osteoporosis, fractures, and obesity.Another potential side effect of steroid use in LT is recurrence of hepatitis C virus (HCV). In the past decade, there has been a dramatic shift in the indications for LT, and HCV has emerged as the single most important cause of end-stage liver disease leading to LT. Although only 16% of transplants were performed for HCV-related cirrhosis in 1991, this increased to over 50% by 2001. 1 Immunosuppression (IS) in HCV patients is a fine balance between adequate IS to prevent rejection and avoidance of over-IS to prevent severe HCV recurrence. 2,3 There is also circumstantial evidence to suggest that steroid boluses result in active viral replication and more aggressive recurrence including fibrosing cholestatic hepatitis. Furthermore, the development of diabetes and hyperlipidemia associated with steroids may increase the risk of steatosis, which has been implicated in worsening the outcome with HCV. 4,5 With significantly improved short-term outcomes over the last 2 decades, 6 the current challenges in LT

Background Vascular calcification is common among patients undergoing dialysis and is associated with mortality. Factors such as osteoprotegerin (OPG), osteopontin (OPN), bone morphogenic protein-7 (BMP-7), and fetuin-A are involved in vascular calcification.Design, setting, participants, & measurements OPG, OPN, BMP-7, and fetuin-A were measured in blood samples from 602 incident dialysis patients recruited from United States dialysis centers between 1995 and 1998 as part of the Choices for Healthy Outcomes In Caring for ESRD Study. Their association with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality were assessed using Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for demographic characteristics, comorbidity, serum phosphate, and calcium. An interaction with diabetes was tested because of its known association with vascular calcification. Predictive accuracy of selected biomarkers was explored by C-statistics in nested models with training and validation subcohorts.Results Higher OPG and lower fetuin-A levels were associated with higher mortality over up to 13 years of follow-up (median, 3.4 years). The adjusted hazard ratios (HR) for highest versus lowest tertile were 1.49 (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.08 to 2.06) for OPG and 0.69 (95% CI, 0.52 to 0.92) for fetuin-A. In stratified models, the highest tertile of OPG was associated with higher mortality among patients without diabetes (HR, 2.42; 95% CI, 1.35 to 4.34), but not patients with diabetes (HR, 1.26; 95% CI, 0.82 to 1.93; P for interaction=0.001). In terms of cardiovascular mortality, higher fetuin-A was associated with lower risk (HR, 0.85 per 0.1 g/L: 95% CI, 0.75 to 0.96). In patients without diabetes, higher OPG was associated with greater risk (HR for highest versus lowest tertile, 2.91; 95% CI, 1.06 to 7.99), but not in patients with diabetes or overall. OPN and BMP-7 were not independently associated with outcomes overall. The addition of OPG and fetuin-A did not significantly improve predictive accuracy of mortality.Conclusions OPG and fetuin-A may be risk factors for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in patients undergoing dialysis, but do not improve risk prediction.

OBJECTIVEAssays for serum total glycated proteins (fructosamine) and the more specific glycated albumin may be useful indicators of hyperglycemia in dialysis patients, either as substitutes or adjuncts to standard markers such as hemoglobin A1c, as they are not affected by erythrocyte turnover. However, their relationship with long-term outcomes in dialysis patients is not well described.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSWe measured fructosamine and glycated albumin in baseline samples from 503 incident hemodialysis participants of a national prospective cohort study, with enrollment from 1995–1998 and median follow-up of 3.5 years. Outcomes were all-cause and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality and morbidity (first CVD event and first sepsis hospitalization) analyzed using Cox regression adjusted for demographic and clinical characteristics, and comorbidities.RESULTSMean age was 58 years, 64% were white, 54% were male, and 57% had diabetes. There were 354 deaths (159 from CVD), 302 CVD events, and 118 sepsis hospitalizations over follow-up. Both fructosamine and glycated albumin were associated with all-cause mortality; adjusted HR per doubling of the biomarker was 1.96 (95% CI 1.38–2.79) for fructosamine and 1.40 (1.09–1.80) for glycated albumin. Both markers were also associated with CVD mortality [fructosamine 2.13 (1.28–3.54); glycated albumin 1.55 (1.09–2.21)]. Higher values of both markers were associated with trends toward a higher risk of hospitalization with sepsis [fructosamine 1.75 (1.01–3.02); glycated albumin 1.39 (0.94–2.06)].CONCLUSIONSSerum fructosamine and glycated albumin are risk factors for mortality and morbidity in hemodialysis patients.