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  • Article
    Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease in Turkey (DIAKIT): A Cross-Sectional Cohort Study
    (BMC, 2025) Arici, Mustafa; Ates, Kenan; Yildiz, Alaattin; Odabas, Ali R.; Tokgoz, Bulent; Sezer, Siren; Altun, Bulent
    Background Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a global public health problem with increasing disease burden affecting nearly 10% of adult population worldwide. We aimed to detect the prevalence of CKD, patients' distribution among CKD stages, and factors associated with having CKD in diabetic patients in Turkey. Methods This cross-sectional study, conducted in 2022, included 1591 patients with diabetes (mean age, 63 +/- 10 years; female: 65.5%) from the Cappadocia Cohort study. CKD was diagnosed by an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60 mL/min/1.73 m(2) or urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) >= 30 mg/g, which was measured in spot urine samples collected in the morning for three consecutive days. Results In this cohort of adult diabetic patients, the prevalence of CKD was 25.1%. More than half of the diabetic patients with CKD (53.8%) had albuminuria without a decrease in eGFR, 28.1% had decreased eGFR without albuminuria, and 18.2% had both albuminuria and decreased eGFR. While the percentage of CKD patients who are female vs. male was 60% vs. 40%, CKD prevalence was higher in males (29.2%) than in females (22.9%) (P = 0.007). Among patients with CKD, only 9.4% were aware that they had CKD. Age, male sex, HbA1c, triglyceride, uric acid, C-reactive protein, and hypertension Grade 1, 2 and 3 were associated with the presence of CKD, with uric acid showing the strongest association. Conclusions More than half of our patients with CKD would not have been diagnosed if urinary albumin excretion was not measured. Early detection of CKD by regular screening of diabetic patients using both UACR and eGFR measurements is essential for early diagnosis and prompt treatment to slow down disease progression.
  • Article
    Randomized Controlled Trials in Europe: A Call to Action to Protect National Healthcare Systems from the Upcoming Tsunami of Kidney Failure
    (Oxford University Press, 2026) Ortiz, Alberto; Arici, Mustafa; Goumenos, Dimitrios S.; Adamczak, Marcin; Eller, Kathrin; Ferreira, Ana Carina; Torra, Roser
    Kidney diseases are among the fastest-growing global health burdens, with chronic kidney disease projected to become the third leading cause of death by 2050. Despite this, therapeutic innovation remains limited: no European Medicines Agency-approved treatment exists for acute kidney injury, and no drugs have demonstrated survival benefits in patients on dialysis. Randomized controlled clinical trials, although pivotal for advancing care, face persistent challenges in nephrology, including patient heterogeneity, multimorbidity, high dropout rates and small populations in rare diseases. In Europe, these intrinsic obstacles are compounded by fragmented implementation of the Clinical Trials Regulation (536/2014), excessive safety reporting demands and lack of nephrology-specific guidance, discouraging academic-led initiatives and limiting pragmatic research. The Coalition for Reducing Bureaucracy in Clinical Trials, a broad alliance of medical societies and patient advocates, has recently published the 'Clinical research in Europe: putting quality and patient safety first' recommendations calling for regulatory harmonization, simplified safety reporting and patient-centred consent. The European Renal Association, a member of the Coalition and contributor to the report, fully supports these recommendations. Implementing such measures is critical to fostering efficient, high-quality nephrology trials in Europe and delivering urgently needed, evidence-based, life-saving and safe therapies for patients with kidney disease.