Assessment of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity and its associated factors among cervical cancer patients in the leading tertiary hospital in Kenya.

INTRODUCTION: Cisplatin is the widely used antineoplastic agent in managing cervical cancer despite nephrotoxicity being a major concern. In addition, there was a paucity of data about the degree of nephrotoxicity due to cisplatin in the study setting. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence of cisplatin nephrotoxicity among cervical patients. METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at the Cancer Treatment Centre of Kenyatta National Hospital among 100 cervical cancer patients treated with a cisplatin regimen. Simple random sampling was employed to the recruit medical record of patients. This study used a data abstraction tool to extract the patients' relevant socio-demographic and clinical characteristics. The data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 25.0 software. Frequency tables and figures were used to present the findings of the study. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to determine factors associated with cisplatin nephrotoxicity. RESULTS: The study showed a mean age of 52.09 ± 10.44 years. The prevalence rate of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in cervical cancer patients was 45%. Of these patients, 36% and 9% patients had grade 1 and 2 nephrotoxicities, respectively. Comorbidities (crude odd's ratio (COR) = 3.05, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.3-7.02, p = 0.011), hypertension (COR = 3.0, 95% CI = 1.1-7.8, p = 0.03), and more than three cycles of cisplatin treatment (adjusted odd's ratio = 4.5, 95% CI = 1.19-17.0, p = 0.027) were significant factors of nephrotoxicity. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity among cervical cancer patients was high in the study setting. Comorbidities, number of cycles and types of comorbidities were significant factors associated with cisplatin nephrotoxicity.

Burden of diabetes and kidney disease attributable to non-optimal temperature from 1990 to 2019: A systematic analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

INTRODUCTION: This study quantitatively described the disease burden of diabetes and kidney disease attributable to non-optimal temperatures and explored the influencing factors. METHODS: We quantitatively described the mortality burden of diabetes and kidney disease attributable to non-optimal temperatures in six countries (China, USA, South Africa, Australia, Iraq, Portugal), and compare trends in mortality in six countries from 1990 to 2019. We used the APC model to analyse age, period, and cohort effects on mortality in six countries. We used restricted cubic splines and quantile regression to analyse the association of SDI with mortality and YLL using data from 21 regions in the world. RESULTS: The mortality rates of diabetes and kidney disease in the six countries in 2019 were 1.72% (Australia), 1.83% (China), 2.99% (USA), 3% (Portugal), 7.45% (South Africa) and 8.71% (Iraq) attributable to non-optimal temperatures. Cold was more harmful than heat. The mortality, YLLs of diabetes and kidney disease of male were higher than females. The mortality rate showed an upwards trend with age. The period effect had little changes or showed a slight upwards trend. The cohort effect showed a downwards trend. The regions with higher mortality or YLLs rates were mainly had SDI values of 0.45-0.80. CONCLUSIONS: Among the death burdens of diabetes and kidney disease attributed to non-optimal temperatures, cold had a greater burden than heat. The burden of death was affected by sex, age, period, cohort, and SDI.

Effect of influenza vaccination on the outcomes of hospitalization for kidney disease in a geriatric population: A propensity-score matched study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The effects of influenza vaccination (IV) on the outcomes of patients with kidney disease (KD) are not completely understood. We aimed to evaluate and compare the outcomes during admission of KD between elderly patients who did or did not receive an IV within the previous 12 months. METHODS: We used health insurance research data in Taiwan and conducted a population-based cohort study that included 22,590 older people aged ≥ 65 years who were hospitalized for KD in 2008-2013. We performed propensity score matching (case-control ratio 1:1) to select 4386 eligible IV recipients and 4386 nonrecipient controls for comparison. The adjusted odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of IV associated with complications and mortality during KD admission were calculated using multivariable logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: During hospitalization for KD, IV was significantly associated with lower risks of 30-day in-hospital mortality (OR 0.56, 95% CI 0.39-0.82), septicemia (OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.68-0.87), and intensive care (OR 0.85, 95% CI 0.75-0.96). Additionally, IV recipients had a shorter length of hospital stay and lower medical expenditure than nonrecipients. Subgroup analyses further showed that the association of IV with reduced adverse events was confined to patients aged ≥ 75 years. CONCLUSIONS: Previous IV was associated with reduced risks of complications and mortality and in elderly patients hospitalized for KD. We raised the possibility and suggested the need to promote IV for this susceptible population of patients with KD.

Preoperative exercise training for adults undergoing elective major vascular surgery: A systematic review.

Patients undergoing major vascular surgery may have an increased risk of postoperative complications due to poor 'fitness for surgery'. Prehabilitation aims to optimise physical fitness and risk factors before surgery to improve outcomes. The role of exercise-based prehabilitation in vascular surgery is currently unclear. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to assess the benefits and harms of preoperative exercise training in adults undergoing elective vascular surgery. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, and CENTRAL databases, trial registries, and forward and backward citations for studies published between January 2008 and April 2021. We included randomised trials that compared patients receiving exercise training with those receiving usual care or no training before vascular surgery. Outcomes included mortality, complications, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Three trials with 197 participants were included. All studies involved people undergoing abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair. Low-certainty evidence could not differentiate between rates of all-cause mortality. Moderate-certainty evidence indicated that postoperative cardiac and renal complications were less likely to occur in people who participated in preoperative exercise training compared with those who did not. Low-certainty evidence also indicated better postoperative HRQOL outcomes in people who undertook prehabilitation. There were no serious exercise-related adverse events. The evidence on preoperative exercise training for AAA patients is promising, but currently insufficiently robust for this intervention to be recommended in clinical guidelines. High-quality trials are needed to establish its clinical and cost-effectiveness. Research is also needed to determine the feasibility and effects of prehabilitation before lower-limb revascularisation. Trial registration: PROSPERO ID: CRD42021245933.

Razão oferta/necessidade de consultas médicas, exames de diagnóstico e acompanhamento da doença renal crônica no Sistema Único de Saúde: estudo descritivo, estado de São Paulo, 2019 / Relación oferta/necesidad de consultas médicas, pruebas diagnósticas y seguimiento de la enfermedad renal crónica en el Sistema Único de Salud: estudio descriptivo, São Paulo, Brasil, 2019 / Supply/demand ratio for medical consultations, diagnostic tests and chronic kidney disease monitoring in the Brazilian National Health System: a descriptive study, state of São Paulo, Brazil, 2019

Objetivo: Determinar a razão oferta/necessidade de procedimentos relacionados com o diagnóstico e assistência à doença renal crônica no Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), no estado de São Paulo, Brasil, 2019. Métodos: Estudo descritivo, utilizando dados dos sistemas de informações ambulatoriais e hospitalares do SUS. Os números de consultas médicas e exames diagnósticos e de acompanhamento da doença renal realizados no período foram comparados com as estimativas de necessidade obtidas por diretrizes ministeriais. Resultados: Usuários exclusivos do SUS eram 28.791.244, e indivíduos com hipertensão e/ou diabetes mellitus, 5.176.188. O número de procedimentos realizados e a razão entre esse número e a necessidade da população foram de 389.414 consultas com nefrologista (85%); 11.540.371 dosagens de creatinina sérica (223%); 705.709 dosagens de proteinúria (14%); 438.123 ultrassonografias renais (190%); e 1.045 biópsias renais (36%). Conclusão: Na assistência à doença renal crônica no SUS existem, simultaneamente, falta de oferta, desperdício e rastreamento deficiente de procedimentos importantes.

Objetivo: Determinar la relación oferta/necesidad de procedimientos relacionados con el diagnóstico y atención de la enfermedad renal crónica en Sistema Único de Salud (SUS) del Estado de São Paulo, Brasil, en 2019. Métodos: Estudio descriptivo utilizando datos de los sistemas de información ambulatoria y hospitalaria del SUS. Se comparó el número de consultas médicas, pruebas de diagnóstico y seguimiento de la enfermedad renal realizados con las estimaciones de necesidad recomendadas por directrices ministeriales. Resultados: Los usuarios exclusivos de SUS fueron 28.791.244 e hipertensos y/o diabéticos, 5.176.188. El número de procedimientos realizados y la relación entre este número y la necesidad de la población fueran de 389.414 consultas con nefrólogo (85%); 11.540.371 determinaciones de creatinina sérica (223%); 705.709 determinaciones de proteinuria (14%); 438.123 ecografías renales (190%); y 1.045 biopsias renales (36%). Conclusión: En la atención de enfermedad renal en SUS existe, simultáneamente, falta de oferta, desperdicio y seguimiento deficiente de procedimientos importantes.

Objective: To determine the supply/demand ratio for procedures related to diagnosis and treatment for chronic kidney disease in the Brazilian National Health System (SUS), in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, 2019. Methods: This was a descriptive study, using data from the SUS outpatient and hospital information systems. The numbers of medical consultations, diagnostic and chronic kidney disease monitoring tests, performed in the period, were compared with the demand estimation, obtained through ministerial guidelines. Results: Exclusive SUS users were 28,791,244, and individuals with arterial hypertension and/or diabetes mellitus, 5,176,188. The number of procedures performed and the ratio between this number and the needs of the population were 389,414 consultations with nephrologists (85%); 11,540,371 serum creatinine tests (223%); 705,709 proteinuria tests (14%); 438,123 kidney ultrasounds (190%); and 1,045 kidney biopsies (36%). Conclusion: In the chronic kidney disease care in the SUS it could be seen simultaneous existence of lack of supply, waste and inadequate screening of important procedures.

COVID-19 Risk Factors and Mortality Outcomes Among Medicare Patients Receiving Long-term Dialysis.

Importance: There is a need for studies to evaluate the risk factors for COVID-19 and mortality among the entire Medicare long-term dialysis population using Medicare claims data. Objective: To identify risk factors associated with COVID-19 and mortality in Medicare patients undergoing long-term dialysis. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective, claims-based cohort study compared mortality trends of patients receiving long-term dialysis in 2020 with previous years (2013-2019) and fit Cox regression models to identify risk factors for contracting COVID-19 and postdiagnosis mortality. The cohort included the national population of Medicare patients receiving long-term dialysis in 2020, derived from clinical and administrative databases. COVID-19 was identified through Medicare claims sources. Data were analyzed on May 17, 2021. Main Outcomes and Measures: The 2 main outcomes were COVID-19 and all-cause mortality. Associations of claims-based risk factors with COVID-19 and mortality were investigated prediagnosis and postdiagnosis. Results: Among a total of 498 169 Medicare patients undergoing dialysis (median [IQR] age, 66 [56-74] years; 215 935 [43.1%] women and 283 227 [56.9%] men), 60 090 (12.1%) had COVID-19, among whom 15 612 patients (26.0%) died. COVID-19 rates were significantly higher among Black (21 787 of 165 830 patients [13.1%]) and Hispanic (13 530 of 86 871 patients [15.6%]) patients compared with non-Black patients (38 303 of 332 339 [11.5%]), as well as patients with short (ie, 1-89 days; 7738 of 55 184 patients [14.0%]) and extended (ie, ≥90 days; 10 737 of 30 196 patients [35.6%]) nursing home stays in the prior year. Adjusting for all other risk factors, residing in a nursing home 1 to 89 days in the prior year was associated with a higher hazard for COVID-19 (hazard ratio [HR] vs 0 days, 1.60; 95% CI 1.56-1.65) and for postdiagnosis mortality (HR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.25-1.37), as was residing in a nursing home for an extended stay (COVID-19: HR, 4.48; 95% CI, 4.37-4.59; mortality: HR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.07-1.16). Black race (HR vs non-Black: HR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.23-1.28) and Hispanic ethnicity (HR vs non-Hispanic: HR, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.64-1.72) were associated with significantly higher hazards of COVID-19. Although home dialysis was associated with lower COVID-19 rates (HR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.75-0.80), it was associated with higher mortality (HR, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.11-1.25). Conclusions and Relevance: These results shed light on COVID-19 risk factors and outcomes among Medicare patients receiving long-term chronic dialysis and could inform policy decisions to mitigate the significant extra burden of COVID-19 and death in this population.

Ambient heat and risks of emergency department visits among adults in the United States: time stratified case crossover study.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the association between ambient heat and visits to the emergency department (ED) for any cause and for cause specific conditions in the conterminous United States among adults with health insurance. DESIGN: Time stratified case crossover analyses with distributed lag non-linear models. SETTING: US nationwide administrative healthcare claims database. PARTICIPANTS: All commercial and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries (74.2 million) aged 18 years and older between May and September 2010 to 2019. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Daily rates of ED visits for any cause, heat related illness, renal disease, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and mental disorders based on discharge diagnosis codes. RESULTS: 21 996 670 ED visits were recorded among adults with health insurance living in 2939 US counties. Days of extreme heat-defined as the 95th centile of the local warm season (May through September) temperature distribution (at 34.4°C v 14.9°C national average level)-were associated with a 7.8% (95% confidence interval 7.3% to 8.2%) excess relative risk of ED visits for any cause, 66.3% (60.2% to 72.7%) for heat related illness, 30.4% (23.4% to 37.8%) for renal disease, and 7.9% (5.2% to 10.7%) for mental disorders. Days of extreme heat were associated with an excess absolute risk of ED visits for heat related illness of 24.3 (95% confidence interval 22.9 to 25.7) per 100 000 people at risk per day. Heat was not associated with a higher risk of ED visits for cardiovascular or respiratory diseases. Associations were more pronounced among men and in counties in the north east of the US or with a continental climate. CONCLUSIONS: Among both younger and older adults, days of extreme heat are associated with a higher risk of ED visits for any cause, heat related illness, renal disease, and mental disorders. These results suggest that the adverse health effects of extreme heat are not limited to older adults and carry important implications for the health of adults across the age spectrum.

A nationwide population-based study on therapeutic plasma exchange for 10 years in Korea using Health Insurance Review and Assessment database.

INTRODUCTION: Indications for therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) have expanded over the years, and the number of procedures is expected to have been increased. Apheresis registries can be difficult to sustain due to workload and privacy issues. This study aimed to analyze national claims data to characterize the use of TPE. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients who underwent TPE were retrospectively identified between January 2008 and December 2017 from the Korean Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service database. Data of patients' characteristics, primary diagnosis, hospitalization, treatment, and procedures were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 9944 patients underwent 62 606 TPE procedures. The median number of TPE procedures performed per patient was 5 (interquartile range, 3-7). Fresh frozen plasma (71.4%) was most commonly used as the replacement fluid. The most common indication was renal diseases (36.8%), followed by hepato-biliary (17.6%) and hematological (15.2%) diseases. Increased frequency of renal diseases was the most remarkable change, which increased from 529 (21.2%) procedures in 2008 to 4107 (44.5%) procedures in 2017, reflecting the widespread implementation of ABO-incompatible kidney transplantation. The top five hospitals conducted 59.6% of the procedures, which showed a centralized distribution. CONCLUSIONS: The most common indication was renal diseases. The number of TPE procedures performed annually increased by approximately 3.7 times from 2008 to 2017. This study shows that other than a registry, claims data can be successfully used to analyze various aspects of TPE procedures on a nationwide scale. This approach could be used by other countries, especially those that have national health insurance.

Peritoneal dialysis: Status report in South and South East Asia.

BACKGROUND: Peritoneal dialysis (PD) as a modality of kidney replacement therapy (KRT) is largely underutilized globally. We analyzed PD utilization, impact of economic status, projected growth and impact of state policy(s) on PD growth in South Asia and Southeast Asia (SA&SEA) region. METHODS: The National Nephrology Societies of the region responded to a questionnaire on KRT practices. The responses were based on the latest registry data, acceptable community-based studies and societal perceptions. The representative countries were divided into high income and higher-middle income (HI & HMI) and low income and lower-middle income (LI & LMI) groups. RESULTS: Data provided by 15 countries showed almost similar percentage of GDP as health expenditure (4%-7%). But there was a significant difference in per capita income (HI & HMI -US$ 28 129 vs. LI & LMI - US$ 1710.2) between the groups. Even after having no significant difference in monthly cost of haemodialysis (HD) and PD in LI & LMI countries, they have poorer PD utilization as compared to HI & HMI countries (3.4% vs. 10.1%); the reason being lack of formal training/incentives and time constraints for the nephrologist while lack of reimbursement and poor general awareness of modalities has been a snag for the patients. The region expects ≥10% PD growth in the near future. Hong Kong and Thailand with 'PD first' policy have the highest PD utilization. CONCLUSION: Important deterrents to PD underutilization were lack of PD centric policies, lackadaisical patient/physician's attitude, lack of structured patient awareness programs, formal training programs and affordability.

Association between Longer Travel Distance for Transplant Care and Access to Kidney Transplantation and Graft Survival in the United States.

BACKGROUND: Transplant candidates may gain an advantage by traveling to receive care at a transplant center that may have more favorable characteristics than their local center. Factors associated with longer travel distance for transplant care and whether the excess travel distance (ETD) is associated with access to transplantation or with graft failure are unknown. METHODS: This study of adults in the United States wait-listed for kidney transplantation in 1995-2015 used ETD, defined as distance a patient traveled beyond the nearest transplant center for initial waiting list registration. We used linear regression to examine patient and center characteristics associated with ETD and Fine-Gray models to examine the association between ETD (modeled as a spline) and time to deceased or living donor transplantation or graft failure. RESULTS: Of 373,365 patients, 11% had an ETD≥50 miles. Traveling excess distance was more likely among patients who were of non-Black race or those whose nearest transplant center had lower annual living donor transplant volume. At an ETD of 50 miles, we observed a lower likelihood of deceased donor transplantation (subhazard ratio [SHR], 0.85; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.84 to 0.87) but higher likelihood of living donor transplantation (SHR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.12 to 1.16) compared with those who received care at their nearest center. ETD was weakly associated with higher risk of graft failure. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who travel excess distances for transplant care have better access to living donor but not deceased donor transplantation and slightly higher risk of graft failure. Traveling excess distances is not clearly associated with better outcomes, especially if living donors are unavailable.

Histomorphological assessment of non-neoplastic renal diseases at autopsy: an institutional experience in Southwestern Nigeria.

Background: Autopsy remains an invaluable resource for medical education and establishing diagnosis of diseases that were missed prior to death. Many patients on admission in hospitals suffer kidney diseases that may contribute to their morbidity and/or mortality. The kidneys from autopsies provide opportunity to diagnose and understand some of these non-neoplastic renal lesions. This study aimed to present the frequency of non-neoplastic renal diseases at autopsy. Methods: We conducted a five-year retrospective review of post-mortem records of deceased who had autopsy. Data such as age, sex, cause of death, and kidney lesions were extracted from the post-mortem records and clinical details were gotten from the clinical summaries in the autopsy reports. The kidneys were examined for pathological findings that were then classified into glomerular, tubulointerstitial (tubulointerstitial nephritis and other tubular lesions such as tubular necrosis, casts and fibrosis) and vascular lesions. Results: A total of seventy (70) cases met the inclusion criteria with 91.4% having significant non-neoplastic renal lesions. The mean age of the deceased was 57.7years (18years - 91years). Males accounted for 65.7% of the cases. Glomerular lesions were seen in 84.3% of the cases, tubulointerstitial nephritis in 41.6% of cases, vascular lesions were seen in 30% of the cases and other tubular lesions (such as stones, casts and tubular necrosis) were seen in 52.9% of the cases. Cardiovascular diseases and infections were the major causes of death in these patients, accounting for 40% and 27% respectively. Renal diseases were attributed to immediate cause of death in 10% of the cases. Conclusion: The kidney at autopsy provides a valuable renal pathology educational tool, as a wide range of medical renal lesions can be seen from kidneys examined at post mortem.

Usefulness of atherogenic index of plasma for estimating reduced eGFR risk: insights from the national health and nutrition examination survey.

AIMS: Previous studies have identified Atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) as a simple measure of atherosclerosis. Because atherosclerosis plays a role in the development of renal damage, our study aims to evaluate the effect of AIP on the risk of reduced eGFR and assess its usefulness to refine the risk stratification of reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). METHODS: Our study included 15,836 participants from the National Health and Nutritional Survey (NHANES) 2009-2016. Association was investigated by logistic regression. AIP was calculated as log (triglycerides/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol). Reduced eGFR was determined as eGFR < 60 ml/min per 1.73 m*2. RESULTS: The prevalence of reduced eGFR was 8.01%. In the full model, each SD increase of AIP leaded to 27.4% additional risk for reduced eGFR. After dividing AIP into quartiles, the fourth quartile had a 1.649 times risk than the first quartile. Moreover, smooth curve fitting suggested that the risk of reduced eGFR elevated linearly with the increase of AIP. Subgroup analysis demonstrated that the association between AIP and reduced eGFR was robust in sex, body mass index, hypertension, and diabetes subpopulation, but the association was significantly stronger in black race and people aged less than 50 years old. Additionally, AUC displayed an advancement when introducing AIP into established risk factors (0.875 cs. 0.897, P < 0.001), category-free net reclassification index (0.249, 95% CI: 0.192-0.306, P < 0.001) and integrated discrimination index (0.007, 95% CI: 0.004-0.009, P < 0.001) also suggested the improvement from AIP. CONCLUSION: The present work suggested a linear association between AIP and reduced eGFR. Furthermore, the results showed that the association was stronger in black race and people aged less than 50 years old. Most importantly, our work implicated the usefulness of AIP to refine the risk stratification of reduced eGFR.

A novel risk assessment model of contrast-induced nephropathy after percutaneous coronary intervention in patients with diabetes.

The purpose of our study was to develop a simple clinical pre-procedure risk model based on clinical characteristics for the prediction of contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) and major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with diabetes. A total of 1113 patients with diabetes who underwent PCI with contrast exposure were randomized into a development group (n = 742) and a validation group (n = 371) in a 2:1 ratio. CIN was defined as an increase of either 25% or 0.5 mg/dL (44.2 µmol/L) in serum creatinine within 72 hours after contrast infusion. A simple CIN risk score based on independent predictors was established. Four variables were identified for our risk score model: LVEF < 40%, acute coronary syndrome (ACS), eGFR < 60, and contrast volume > 300 mL. Based on this new CIN risk score, the incidence of CIN had a significant trend with increased predicting score values of 5.9%, 32.9% and 60.0%, corresponding to low-, moderate- and high-risk groups, respectively. The novel risk assessment exhibited moderate discrimination ability for predicting CIN, with an AUC of 0.759 [95% CI 0.668-0.852, P = .001] in the validation cohort. It also had similar prognostic values for one-year follow-up MACE (C-statistic: 0.705 and 0.606 for new risk score and Mehran score, respectively). This novel risk prediction model could be effective for preventing nephropathy in diabetic patients receiving contrast media during surgical procedures.

COVID-19 and Kidney Disease Disparities in the United States.

Racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, age, and sex-related health disparities in kidney disease are prominent in the United States. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has disproportionately affected marginalized populations. Older adults, people experiencing unstable housing, racial and ethnic minorities, and immigrants are potentially at increased risk for infection and severe complications from COVID-19. The direct and societal effects of the pandemic may increase risk of incident kidney disease and lead to worse outcomes for those with kidney disease. The rapid transition to telemedicine potentially limits access to care for older adults, immigrants, and people experiencing unstable housing. The economic impact of the pandemic has had a disproportionate effect on women, minorities, and immigrants, which may limit their ability to manage kidney disease and lead to complications or kidney disease progression. We describe the impact of COVID-19 on marginalized populations and highlight how the pandemic may exacerbate existing disparities in kidney disease.