(Brussels, Belgium) – – – Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) has announced that it has begun updates of its Clinical Practice Guidelines on Hepatitis C and Chronic Kidney Disease-Mineral and Bone Disorder (CKD-MBD). The Hepatitis C Guideline was KDIGO’s first, published in 2008, followed by the CKD-MBD Guideline in 2009. This important project will be a global effort to review all relevant new evidence and formulate revised recommendations aimed at improving patient outcomes worldwide.

KDIGO is a self-managed, international organization that works to improve patient outcomes through evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, controversies conferences on cutting edge kidney disease topics, and implementation of guidelines and conference recommendations around the world. KDIGO has published nine guidelines to date, and this newly announced duo of updates marks a milestone for the organization.

KDIGO Co-chair, David Wheeler, of the Medical College, London, said, “We understand how important it is to keep existing KDIGO guidelines up to date and reflecting the latest evidence. This project starts us on a path towards a more modular guideline format which will allow us to update recommendations in a more consistent and timely manner.”

The CKD-MBD Guideline Update is co-chaired by Mary Leonard of Stanford University, USA, and Markus Ketteler of the Coburg Clinic, Germany. Drs. Michel Jadoul, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium, and Paul Martin, University of Miami, USA, will lead the Hepatitis C Guideline Update.  The evidence review team selection process is currently underway.

KDIGO guidelines follow a rigorous scientific process to assure thorough analysis of the published evidence, clear statements built from that evidence, and a science based series of recommendations that are relevant around the world. These guideline updates will follow the same rigorous process set by previous KDIGO guideline efforts.

KDIGO Co-chair, Bertram Kasiske of the University of Minnesota explains, “This is an exciting time for KDIGO. Armed with expert suggestions put forth by the KDIGO Methods Committee chaired by Dr. Katrin Uhlig, KDIGO has embarked on a project that will keep guidelines up to date with on-going evidence surveillance so that we can revise specific guideline recommendation statements whenever there is a scientific based reason to modify them.”

The CKD-MBD Guideline Update is scheduled to be published in late 2015, followed by the Hepatitis C Guideline Update in early 2016. Both guidelines will join KDIGO’s current library of guidelines available on the KDIGO website www.kdigo.org and on the KDIGO iPad app, available for free download in the Apple Store.

For further information please contact KDIGO at [email protected].

# # #