Clinical Trials
for Kidney Disease
Kidney disease trials evaluate SGLT2 inhibitors, dialysis protocols, renal transplant regimens, and supportive-care strategies for chronic and acute kidney disease.
Kidney Disease clinical trials: what to expect
Kidney disease trials are mostly for chronic kidney disease that is slowly getting worse, including kidney disease caused by diabetes. They test medicines meant to slow the decline in kidney function and protect the heart, usually on top of the standard blood pressure and diabetes treatments. Specific kidney diseases such as IgA nephropathy, FSGS and polycystic kidney disease now have many trials of their own, and separate studies enroll people on dialysis or living with a transplant.
Who kidney disease trials usually look for
Trials describe kidney disease by two numbers: the filtration rate (eGFR) from a blood test and the amount of protein in the urine. Most enroll an eGFR between about 20 and 75 and a urine protein level above a cut-off, both measured at screening. Nearly all ask that you have taken a stable dose of a blood-pressure medicine of the ACE inhibitor or ARB type for three months, and many allow or require an SGLT2 inhibitor. IgA nephropathy and FSGS trials need a past kidney biopsy. Common exclusions are a transplant, dialysis and uncontrolled blood pressure.
What taking part involves
Screening includes blood and urine tests, sometimes a 24-hour urine collection, and a review of your records. Trials then run one to three years with visits every four to twelve weeks for labs and blood pressure, taking a study pill or injection added to your usual medicines; placebo arms are common and an extension often follows. Your nephrologist keeps managing your care. Study medicine and tests are free and visits are usually paid.
Questions worth asking the study team
Which stage the trial enrolls and whether you fit it; whether any of your medicines change; how often labs are needed; the chance of placebo; and whether you will be told your own kidney results during the study.
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Questions about Kidney Disease clinical trials
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