Nephrology, Hypertension & Renal Transplantation
Nephrology, Hypertension & Renal Transplantation
Information for the Patient
Three inpatient consult teams serve patients at Shands Hospital and the Gainesville Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Each team includes an attending physician, a fellow, a first (PGY-2) or second (PGY-3) year medical resident and two to four medical students.
The consult service at Shands Hospital maintains a daily census of 20 to 25 patients. The consult team evaluates patients with a wide variety of acute and chronic renal, hypertensive, and electrolyte disorders, performs percutaneous kidney biopsies, and manages patients requiring either acute or chronic dialysis. The inpatient service performs about 3000 dialysis treatments, 1500 CRRT treatments, and 40-50 renal biopsies annually.
The inpatient transplant service at Shands Hospital has a daily census of 10 to 15 patients. The team performs pretransplant and living related donor evaluations and follows all transplant patients post-operatively on a separate transplant ward. Currently, approximately 125 kidney transplants are performed each year and more than 1,000 kidney transplant recipients are managed as outpatients.
The consult service at the VAMC carries an average census of 10 to 15 patients, and provides inpatient consultations for all nephrologic and hypertensive disorders. This service also staffs an active acute and chronic hemodialysis facility.
For more information on Clinic Locations and Services Offered please click here.
Outpatient Clinic
Extensive outpatient activities are carried out by the division faculty
and fellows. They are conducted in two renal transplant clinics, one
hypertension clinic, and two general nephrology clinics at Shands
Hospital. We evaluate and manage patients with a wide variety of
conditions, including glomerulonephritis, renal artery stenosis,
hyperaldosteronism, chronic renal insufficiency, and hypertension. A large
number of patients with renal artery stenosis and chronic renal
insufficiency are seen in these clinics because of the availability of CO2
angiography at Shands Hospital and the Gainesville VAMC. CO2 angiography
enables renal artery angiography utilizing CO2 as the contrast agent;
since this agent is physiologic and has essentially no nephrotoxicity, it
allows renal angiography to be performed with less risk of acute renal
failure than conventional radiocontrast agents.
In the transplant clinic we follow approximately 1000 patients, including patients immediately following their renal transplant, and patients with functioning renal transplants who may be several years out from their transplant. For additional information regarding being seen in or referring patients to this clinic, please call 352-265-0254.
At the Gainesville VAMC the faculty and fellows see patients in a combined nephrology and hypertension clinic. For additional information regarding being seen in or referring patients to the VA clinic, please call (352) 374-6102.
Acute Dialysis
The Division provides a wide variety of acute dialysis for patients
with renal failure. We provide conventional acute hemodialysis, and
continuous renal replacement therapy with acute peritoneal dialysis and
continousous veno-venous hemodialysis.
End-Stage Renal Disease
The Division believes that providing high-quality renal replacement
therapy to patients with end-stage renal disease is critical to our
mission. Under the supervision of Dr. Edward Ross, Director of the
End-Stage Renal Disease Program, the division provides in-center
hemodialysis, home hemodialysis home CAPD and home CCPD therapy.
In-center hemodialysis is provided at the Shands Dialysis Center.
Full training and management in home hemodialysis, CAPD and CCPD is also
available at the Shands Dialysis Center.
For additional information, please call 352-265-6890.
Renal Transplantation
Providing renal transplantation is an important function of the
Division of Nephrology. Each year approximately 150 patients receive
either living-related or cadaveric renal renal transplants under the
supervision of the Division. We evaluate patients before transplant,
assist in their management during the admission for transplantation, and
follow patients once discharged. In the outpatient renal transplant
clinics we manage immunosuppression, hypertension, hyperkalemia,
polycythemia and other complications of renal transplantation. Should
acute or chronic rejection occur, we evaluate patients extensively,
including transplant biopsy, if needed, and then implement necessary
anti-rejection therapy. All renal transplant patients admitted to either
Shands Hospital or the Gainesville VAMC are seen and cared for by members
of the Division.
For additional information, including referral for transplantation or follow-up in the renal transplant clinics, please call (352) 265-8243.
Patient Resources
Websites of interest
American Association of Kidney Patients
http://www.aakp.org
American Kidney Foundation (patients)
http://www.kidney.org/index.cfm?index=patients
American Kidney Foundation (dialysis information)
http://www.kidney.org/atoz/atozTopic.cfm?topic=10
Nephrology Clinic information
http://www.medicine.ufl.edu/clinics/neph_clinic.asp
Interactive Map
http://www.shands.org/maps/default.asp