The Division of Nephrology maintains a wide range of clinical activities. It has a 20-bed renal program, a chronic hemodialysis center, an eightbed acute dialysis facility, a chronic ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) program and outpatient clinics (twice weekly, general renal clinic, CAPD clinic and transplant clinic). The staff of the Division provide patient care for renal patients at LAC+USC Medical Center and USC University Hospital, and consultative service at LAC+USC Medical Center, USC University Hospital and USC/Norris Cancer Hospital.

The Division has one faculty attending on the renal ward and another on the consult service throughout the year at LAC+USC Medical Center. The attending staff round with house officers, fellows and students every day and conduct teaching and patient care rounds. The faculty on the consult service see all the renal consults and provide follow up visits with the housestaff, fellows and students. The Chief conducts weekly rounds on the renal service. We also have faculty in the renal clinics throughout the year.

Our faculty admit patients and provide renal replacement therapy and consultation services at USC University Hospital and USC/Norris Cancer Hospital.

At present, we have 225 hemodialysis patients and 62 CAPD patients for a total of 285 patients at Da Vita-USC Dialysis Unit. In addition, the Division performs over 300 acute dialyses per month and sees between 25-35 patients per session in the general renal outpatient clinics at the LAC+USC Medical Center. Over 40 patients have received kidney transplantation under the care of our faculty during the period of this report.

Special Clinical Services

Hypertension Center
The USC Hypertension Center is a comprehensive clinical program for the diagnosis and management of patients with secondary and resistant forms of hypertension. The center is held by Drs. Vito M. Campese and Mitra K. Nadim two outfield specialists in hypertension, and is supported by Dr. Fred A. Weaver Professor of Surgery and Chief of the Division of Vascular Surgery. The Hypertension Center is staffed by fulltime teaching faculty who are certified in hypertension beside physical specialist, resource include clinical nurse specialists, nutritionists, and pharmacologists. The Center specializes in the diagnosis and management of renovascular hypertension, pheochomocythoma, and primary aldosteronism and in the management of orthostatic hypotension.

Kidney Transplant
The USC Kidney Transplant Program is a comprehensive clinical program for the evaluation and management of patients with end-stage renal disease who are candidate for kidney transplant. Full-time teaching faculty who are certified in nephrology staffs the center and transplantation the medical director of the center is Dr. Mohamed El-Shahawy. The Surgical Director of the center is Dr. Richard Selby, Chief of the Abdominal Transplant Program at Keck School of Medicine.