The Spanish Society of Nephrology (SEN) and the Senefro Foundation have awarded a clinical research grant to a study led by the Nephrology and Kidney Transplant research group of the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) to improve the monitoring of patients with advanced diabetic kidney disease. The project has been one of the six chosen among 45 applications in a call that aims to support scientific research in the field of nephrology.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major health problem worldwide. Advanced diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is the first cause of initiation of renal replacement therapy, so it is necessary to develop strategies to slow the progression of the disease and for this it is essential to perform a personalized follow-up of the person with advanced kidney disease.

In recent years, Vall d'Hebron has developed a digital tool known as NORA that allows personalized and remote monitoring of chronic patients who suffered a stroke and achieves better control of cardiovascular risk factors. In the new project funded by the SEN, the team of researchers aims to carry out a pilot study to validate NORA in patients with DRE visited in consultation, focusing on the control of risk factors for progression of renal disease.

For this purpose, clinical and analytical variables will be collected and a clinical follow-up of the patient will be carried out in order to design predictive models of risk of renal progression. Specific interventions will be developed for each profile according to renal and vital prognosis. Subsequently, an open randomized study will be carried out for all the patients visited in the consulting rooms. At 12 and 18 months, the reduction in renal disease progression and cardiovascular events will be assessed according to each individual's specific risk using NORA compared to the control group.

"If our intervention shows an improvement in outcomes, it could change the way patients with DKD are managed and a more efficient and patient-centered follow-up will be possible, slowing progression to end-stage renal disease," says Dr. María José Soler, nephrologist at the Nephrology Department of Vall d'Hebron University Hospital and co-head of the Nephrology group at VHIR. The project "Validation study of a Smartphone application (NORA) in patients with advanced diabetic kidney disease. Effect on renal disease progression and cardiovascular mortality in COVID epoch" is led by Dr. María José Soler. Dr. Néstor Toapanta, Dr. Sheila Bermejo, Dr. Ester Sánchez and Dr. Juan León Román, researchers of the same group, also participate.

NORA is a technology created by Dr. Carlos Molina, head of the Neurology Section - Stroke Unit at Vall d'Hebron University Hospital and head of the Stroke research group at VHIR; and Dr. Marc Ribó, neurologist at Vall d'Hebron Stroke Unit and researcher of the same group at VHIR. The tool aims to provide personalized follow-up and comprehensive evidence-based patient management by optimizing communication between patients and healthcare professionals, integrating patient-reported data in real time, and increasing patient involvement in their health.