Nephrology/Hypertension
Located within the Children's Hospital of London Health Science Centre, the Paediatric Nephrology & Hypertension Program, established in 1992, holds a three-fold mission: The program aims to provide optimal care for children in Southwestern Ontario and parts of Northern and Central Ontario grappling with acute and chronic kidney disease, congenital renal abnormalities and hypertension.
It strives to maintain a multi-disciplinary childhood end-stage renal disease program including renal replacement therapies. The program is dedicated to fostering the development of an integrated basic and clinical research program focusing on understanding the biology and mechanisms of childhood kidney disease and hypertension.
The program delivers comprehensive clinical services in inpatient and outpatient settings for children with primary kidney diseases. Consultative services for children hospitalized with various disorders, including life-threatening conditions, and for unborn children with kidney anomalies. Additionally, the program places a significant focus on hypertension, offering a full diagnostic
Services provided by the program encompass both acute and chronic peritoneal and hemodialysis, with acute dialysis playing a critical role in the tertiary and quaternary care essential for supporting the activities of the Paediatric Critical Care program. Continuous renal replacement therapy is available in collaboration with the Paediatric Critical Care program. Collaborating with adult nephrology colleagues enables the performance of various blood purification methods, such as plasma exchange, LDL apheresis, and leukapheresis. Collaborative partnerships with the adult nephrology service and dialysis units ensure comprehensive dialysis care for children with end-stage kidney disease and their families.
The program is also closely associated with Transplant programs at the Hospital For Sick Children in Toronto and the adult Renal Transplant Program at the University Campus of LHSC. Furthermore, the program engages in research areas including childhood kidney disease epidemiology, kidney function measurement, strategies to decelerate chronic kidney disease progression, hypertension etiology and treatment, enhancement of outcomes post-pediatric kidney transplantation, and paediatric pharmacology related to nephrology and hypertension medications. A particular research emphasis lies in studying the developmental changes in drug disposition of immunosuppressive medications used in paediatric renal transplants.
The Team:
- Dr. Ajay Sharma, Division Chief, Associate Professor
Dr. Guido Filler, Professor- Dr. Joanne Grimmer, Associate Professor
- Dr. Amrit Kirpalani, Assistant Professor
- Sarah Lafond, Nurse Case Manager
- Megan Cook, specialist for dialysis
- Heather Heise, Dietitian
- Kaitlyn Moses, Social Work
- Victoria Wong, Pharmacy
- Serena Barrow, Medical Secretary
- Fivi Taruna, Medical Secretary
Key Facts:
- Childhood hypertension prevalence is increasing
- Children account for 1.5% of all end-stage renal disease cases in Canada
- We offer living-related and cadaveric kidney transplantation
- The Paediatric end-stage kidney disease program at Children's Hospital, LHSC, is experiencing growth
- The incidence of kidney stones and nephrocalcinosis in children and adolescents doubles every five years
- The program accepts children and adolescents up to 18 for enrollment.
