Research in action .

Thanks to you, our supporters, we’ve pledged to fund a number of new projects in the last few months. Here’s just a selection, with thoughts from our readers’ panel about the difference they will make.

New research aims to reduce complications in children on haemodialysis

Understanding the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on kidney patient care

The problem

As kidney function declines patients may need kidney replacement therapy. This either involves dialysis, using a machine to clean the blood, or a kidney transplant. Finding a suitable kidney for transplant can be a slow process, and children are often on dialysis for long periods of time. Central venous lines (CVLs) are tubes that are inserted into a vein and left in to allow access to blood for dialysis. However, so far, the CVLs do not work well in children and patients often require multiple lines to be replaced. Claudio thinks that it is now time to rethink the CVL designs, putting children and their features at the centre of innovation in this field.

The solution

Claudio and his team want to use engineering software, computer analyses and experiments in the lab to redesign CVLs specifically for use in children. They will adapt their design to be better suited to children; this project aims to reduce complications, improving the experience of being on dialysis.

What this might mean for kidney patients

CVLs that have been designed specifically for children could lead to dialysis that is safer and more effective. Importantly, children will also likely spend less time in hospital due to complications.

After having many complications with my son whilst on dialysis, including many infections and being told his line may have to be removed and a new one inserted, I feel this new research may help other children avoid similar issues and improve the dialysis journey. Toris Amos (parent

The problem

The Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted healthcare services in the UK, raising important questions about how well chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been detected, monitored and managed during this difficult period. A missed CKD diagnosis is associated with worse health outcomes, but we don’t yet know which patients are at greatest risk of being missed.

The solution

Medical records from patients registered with GP surgeries contain details of diagnosis, treatments and tests. By combining healthcare information from large groups of patients, without any details included that could identify an individual, Dr Stewart will look for important trends and patterns in how CKD is diagnosed and managed in different patient groups.

What this might mean for kidney patients

Dr Stewart’s work will help us to understand how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the health and care of people living with CKD, and why some people are missed. The information from this study will help us to understand what groups of patients are most likely to have missed out on early diagnosis, design ways of helping patients now and support more equal access to healthcare in future.