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NephJC 2026 Fall Pledge Drive

Help keep NephJC a vital, original, and unbiased source of medical education.

NephJC 2026 Fall Pledge Drive
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Brian Rifkin
REFINe-ing AI’s Role in Nephrology Diagnosis

This week, we will discuss the use of LLMs for the diagnosis of complex nephrology cases. Can AI help nephrologists nail the correct diagnosis?

REFINe-ing AI’s Role in Nephrology Diagnosis
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Akshaya J
Too sweet to be true? Prophylactic SGLT2 ...

MERCURI-2 reports that dapagliflozin cuts postoperative AKI after cardiac surgery, but the headline result is mostly a urine-output story, not a creatinine one. That matters: urine output after surgery is easily swayed by anesthesia, fluid shifts, vasopressors, and a diuretic drug in the mix. Until dapagliflozin shows it protects kidney function, not just urine output.

Too sweet to be true? Prophylactic SGLT2 inhibitors before cardiac surgery
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Cristina Adriana Popa
Buffering without benefit? The SODa-BIC study

This week, we will discuss SODaBIC trial: with ICU acidosis driven by multiple overlapping mechanisms, is bicarbonate infusion supported by robust evidence, or does it persist mainly out of habit rather than physiology?

Buffering without benefit? The SODa-BIC study
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Pallavi Prasad
Beyond Diabetic Kidney Disease: FIND-ing ...

FIND-CKD extends finerenone beyond diabetic kidney disease, showing slower eGFR decline and sustained albuminuria reduction in non-diabetic CKD. While the benefits are modest and cardiovascular effects remain uncertain, the trial opens the door to broader use of nsMRAs and raises important questions about combination therapy with SGLT2 inhibitors.

Beyond Diabetic Kidney Disease: FIND-ing Finerenone's Next Role

TOTW

Tweet of the Week: Urine Eosinophils and NephroCheck

Dr. Faubel nailed the best comment about NephroCheck by reminding us while we pick apart the particulars of NephroCheck that we have some other dragons to slay:

And then Edgar slides in with the appropriate #NephPearl (How does he do that so fast?)

Tweet of the night

We had a great NephJC last night. We had a new contributor who was excellent, Eric Weinhandl of Minnesota.

Dr. Weinhandl works with the new PEER Kidney Care Initiative. It looks like a cool project. Here is some press from Nephrology News and Issues.