Podcast Categories
Instructions
There are two ways to listen to the AST Conversations in Transplantation:
- To listen to the interviews, simply click on the link. Make sure to have your sound turned on. The mp3 will open and play in your default music player.
- To save the mp3 to your computer, simply right click on the link and click “save target as”.
All podcasts are able to be downloaded in iTunes and are searchable via “conversations in transplantation”. We are working to make this more easily searchable and will continue to keep you updated.
2010 Conversations in Transplantation are kindly supported by Astellas Pharma US, Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, and CSL Behring
Subscribe to all topics
You can subscribe to the RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed, by clicking on one of the RSS icons above.
RSS is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content. RSS makes it possible for people to keep up with their favorite web sites in an automated manner that’s easier than checking them manually.
AST Conversations In Transplantation Podcasts
Clinical Pharmacy Services in the Outpatient Transplant Setting
In this podcast, Dr. Angela Maldonado, Clinical Assistant Professor of Pharmacotherapy at Washington State University and Kidney Transplant Pharmacist at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital, discusses the clinical services pharmacists provide in the outpatient transplant clinic. Dr. Maldonado describes the regulatory requirements, typical work flow, billing practices, and resource requirements to establish these services.
Recurrent FSGS Treatment Options
In this podcast, Dr. Patrick Niaudet, Head of Pediatric Nephrology Department, Professor of Pediatrics, Hopital Necker-Enfants Malades, a current editor for Pediatric Nephrology of "UpToDate", and a participating Editor of "Pediatric Nephrology", 2009, together with Dr. Amira Al-Uzri, Medical Director of the Pediatric Kidney Transplant Program, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Oregon Health & Science University, discuss the topic of recurrent focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) post kidney transplantation in children. Dr. Niaudet gives a thorough overview of the incidence and risk factors associated with recurrent FSGS post kidney transplantation, the genetic abnormalities present in a subset of patients, and potential new treatment options.
Approach to the Sensitized Child
Dr. Gina-Marie Barletta at the Helen DeVos Children's Hospital talks with Dr. Stanley C. Jordan, Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine, UCLA School of Medicine, Director of Kidney Transplantation and Transplant Immunology, Comprehensive Transplant Center, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on the topic of transplant in highly sensitized children.
Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Renal Transplant Patients
In this podcast, Dr. Jens Goebel, Medical Director of Kidney Transplantation at Cincinnati Children's and Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and Dr. Alicia Neu, Medical Director of Pediatric Dialysis and Kidney Transplantation at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, discuss the issue of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in non-kidney transplant patients with an emphasis on pediatric patients. Dr. Goebel describes the limitations of current methods of measuring glomerular function rate, the typical causes of CKD and potential mechanisms to slow progression of CKD in this population.
AST Infectious Diseases Guidelines 2: What is new and how to use?
In this podcast, Dr. Upton Allen, Professor of Pediatrics and Chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at the Hospital for Sick Children at the University of Toronto, discusses the Second Edition of the AST Guidelines for Infections after Transplantation. Dr. Allen emphasizes some of the new data in this edition of the guidelines compared to the first edition. This podcast provides practical information on how to access and best make use of the guidelines to assist in caring for transplant recipients with infectious complications as well as preventing infections in this patient population.
Immunosuppressant and Antiretroviral Drug Interaction Management in HIV Infected Transplant Recipients
In this podcast, Dr. Gregory E. Malat, Transplant Pharmacist Hahnemann University Hospital and Assistant Professor Drexel University School of Medicine, and Dr. Eric M Tichy, Clinical Pharmacist from the Yale-New Haven Transplantation Center, discuss the unique issues regarding management of drug interactions between transplant immunosuppressants and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Dr. Malat describes the components of HAART regimens, reviews the impact HAART medications have on immunosuppressant drug levels, and provides recommendations for management of these issues in the clinical transplant setting.
DCD Transplant Outcomes of Organs
In this podcast, Dr. Randall Sung, Associate Professor of Surgery and Surgical Director of the Kidney and Kidney Pancreas Transplant Program at the University of Michigan Medical School, discusses transplant outcomes of organs procured from donors after cardiac death. Dr. Sung discusses the details involved in the definition of donation after cardiac death, donor management and transplant outcomes as well as ethical issues associated with this modality.This podcast also provides practical, up-to-date information and advice to physicians who may have questions about the advantages and disadvantages of transplantation of organs from donors after cardiac death, and would like to counsel their transplant candidates about accepting organs procured from these donors.
Liver Transplantation in Neonates
In this podcast, originally recorded in December 2009, Dr. George Mazariegos, Chief of Pediatric Transplantation and Liver Transplant Surgeon at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, and Professor of Surgery and Critical Care Medicine at University of Pittsburgh, discusses the challenges and current outcomes of neonatal liver transplantation. He reviews the diseases commonly leading to liver failure in the neonatal period and the unique considerations and challenges while awaiting organ availability. He also discusses the current medical and surgical outcomes after liver transplantation in neonates in 2010 including the outcomes with neonatal and infant donors, and other novel treatment alternatives in this challenging patient population.
Navigating the Issues of Immunosuppressive Medication Coverage and Patient Assistance Programs
In this podcast, recorded on December 18, 2009, Dr. Lisa McDevitt, Transplant Pharmacist at Tufts Medical Center and Assistant Professor at Tufts School of Medicine, discusses the unique issue regarding insurance coverage of immunosuppressive medications. She describes the differences in coverage offered by Medicare B and D as well as private insurance. In addition, the utilization of patient assistance programs and private grants are reviewed.
Making a Successful Transition from Pediatrics to Adult Transplant Teams
In this podcast, recorded on December 17, 2009, Dr. Patricia Harren, Clinical Director of the Pediatric Transplant Institute at Columbia University, discusses strategies to transition pediatric patients to the adult transplant team. Working with patients and their families in a team approach to prepare them with the necessary knowledge and skills to advocate for themselves and maintain continued health promoting behaviors allows for a smoother, successful transition.
Malignancy and Malignancy Screening in Women with Solid Organ Transplants
In this podcast, recorded on December 17, 2009, Dr. Roslyn Mannon, Professor of Medicine and Surgery, and Director of Transplantation Research at the University of Alabama presents, a thorough discussion of the relevant issues in maligancy detection, diagnosis and management in patients with kidney transplants, the role of specific immunosuppression in patients with malignancies and gives guidelines for the waitlisting of patients with prior malignancies. The listener of this podcast will have up-to-date approaches to the pathophysiology of cancer as well as strategies for better detection and treatment in their kidney transplant patients.
National Transplantation Pregnancy Registry
In this podcast, recorded on December 14, 2009, Lisa Coscia, Senior Transplant Registry Research Coordinator, National Transplantation Pregnancy Registry (NTPR) at Thomas Jefferson University, describes the National Transplantation Pregnancy Registry (NTPR), its establishment, methods and process. She encourages all health care professional or transplant recipient to call the NTPR with any questions regarding pregnancy after transplantation.
Generic Immunosuppressants
In this podcast, recorded in December 10, 2009, Dr. Eric Tichy, from the Yale-New Haven Transplantation Center, interviews Dr. Rita R. Alloway, Research Professor of Medicine and Director, Transplant Clinical Research at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Alloway discusses the use of generic immunosuppressants in transplantation. She describes the generic approval process, details the history of generic medication use in transplantation, and reviews the impact generic immunosuppressants have on patients and healthcare providers.
The Role of the Pharmacist on the Multidisciplinary Transplant Team
In this podcast, recorded on December 9, 2009, Dr. Eric Tichy, from the Yale-New Haven Transplantation Center, interviews Dr. Nicole Weimert, Clinical Specialist in Solid Organ Transplantation Medical University of South Carolina and Assistant Professor at the South Carolina College of Pharmacy. Dr. Weimertﾠdiscusses the roles that clinical pharmacists play in transplantation. She focuses on the typical activities of a transplant pharmacist on the patient care team, discusses the education pharmacists provide to patients and staffﾠand describes the impact pharmacists have hadﾠin the field of transplantation.
Bone Disease in Transplant Recipients
In this podcast, Dr. Michelle Josephson, Professor of Medicine and Director of Transplantation Medicine at the University of Chicago, discusses Bone Disease in transplant recipients. She emphasizes the importance of understanding the pathophysiology of bone disease and discusses the current screening and treatment recommendations as well as the most current KDIGO recommendations. This podcast provides practical, up-to-date information and advice for physicians about how to diagnose and treat bone disease in the transplant patient population.
Immunosuppressive Coverage in Healthcare Reform Legislation
Mr. William Applegate, Director of AST Government Relations, discusses the efforts of the AST to gain inclusion of immunosuppressive coverage in Healthcare Reform Legislation.
Adherence, Risk-Taking Behaviors and Adolescent Issues Post Pediatric Transplantation
In this podcast, Dr. Miriam Kaufman, Professor of Paediatrics and Adolescent Consultant to The Transplant Centre at The Hospital for Sick Children/University of Toronto, discusses substance use, sexuality and non-adherence in adolescent solid organ transplant recipients. She emphasizes the importance of understanding the context of their behavior - their developing identity, emotional awareness and cognitive sophistication; and provides practical advice for physicians about how to approach and give advice around some of the key issues.
Elimination of Immunosuppression in Living Donor Pediatric Liver Transplant Recipients
In this podcast, Dr. Sandy Feng, Associate Professor of Surgery and Director of the Abdominal Transplantation Fellowship Program at UCSF, describes the rationale, protocol, and preliminary results of a pilot study in which immunosuppression is slowly weaned and discontinued in highly selected pediatric liver transplant recipients. She emphasizes the preliminary nature of the study and suggests caution in considering the protocol in high risk patients or recipients of other organ transplants.
Immunizations in Pediatric Transplant Candidates and Recipients
Dr. Michael Green interviews Dr. Marian Michaels, Professor of Pediatrics and Surgery at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. In this podcast, Dr. Michaels discusses issues regarding the need to improve routine vaccination rates for children undergoing transplantation. Recommendations on how to achieve this and the rationale behind immunizations are reviewed.
Novel H1N1 Influenza Virus
In this podcast, Dr. Marian Michaels, Professor of Pediatrics and Surgery at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, discusses the novel H1N1 influenza virus and what it means to transplant patients and health care workers. She discusses the origin and epidemiology of this new virus and provides practical guidance on diagnosis, prevention and treatment of this virus as it pertains to transplant patients.
Preliminary Outcomes of the Clinical Trials in Organ Transplantation-01 Study
In this podcast, Dr. Donald Hricik, Professor of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University and Chief, Division of Nephrology at University Hospitals Case Medical Center, describes the purpose of CTOT-01, discusses the immune assays being tested as predictors of long-term kidney transplant outcomes and also summarizes some of the preliminary results of the study. He also describes potential clinical applications and anticipated next steps in this research endeavor.
The Role of Natural Killer Cells in Solid Organ Transplantation
In this podcast, Dr. Joren Madsen, Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, Director of the Transplant Center and Section Chief in Cardiac Surgery at the Massachusetts General Hospital and current President of the AST, describes the role of NK cells in both innate and adaptive immunity. He describes recent research delineating the role of NK cells in allograft rejection and tolerance, and speculates about targeting NK cells therapeutically.
ABO Incompatible Heart Transplantation in Young Infants
In this podcast, Dr. Lori West, Professor of Pediatrics, Surgery and Immunology and Director of Heart Transplantation Research at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, discusses how the lack of isohemagglutinins in the early neonatal period allows safe ABO incompatible heart transplantation without the need for modified post transplant Immunosuppression. She also describes the long term outcomes of more than 120 children who have received such ABO incompatible heart transplants since 2001.
T - Regulatory Cells in Solid Organ Transplantation
In this podcast, Dr. Nader Najafian, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Associate Physician at the Brigham and Women''s Hospital in Boston, discusses the role of various T-regulatory cells in normal humans and after organ transplantation. He describes the influence of various immunosuppressive agents on the frequencies of T - regulatory cells and speculates on future strategies that might be used to expand and exploit the beneficial effects of these cells.
Health Care Reform Initiatives on Capital Hill
In this podcast, Mr. William Applegate provides a general update on health care reform initiatives on Capital Hill. He specifically updates the status of legislation designed to extend immunosuppressive medication coverage and discusses the efforts of key congressmen involved in this effort.
Fungal Infections in Transplantation
Dr. Nina Singh is the Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh and Chief of Transplant Infectious Diseases at the VA Medical Center. In this podcast, Dr. Singh discusses the epidemiology of fungal infections in transplant recipients and the need for antifungal prophylaxis especially after liver and lung transplant. She further discusses the advantages / disadvantages of various antifungal medications that can be used for prophylaxis and molecular testing for fungal infections.
Infant Kidney Transplants: From Worst to Best Results
In this podcast, Dr. Vikas Dharnidharka, Chair of the Executive Committee of the AST Pediatric Community of Practice, interviews Dr. William Harmon, Pediatric Nephrology Division Chief of Childrens Hospital, Boston. Dr. Harmon, a past president of the American Society of Transplantation, is also a leader in the science of transplanting kidneys to very young children. In this podcast, Harmon reviews why infants had poor results with kidney transplantation in the older era and the advances that have led to the current era, where infants now how have the best long-term results among all age groups that receive kidney transplants.
Preliminary results of Clinical Trials in Organ Transplantation - Study 2 (CTOT-2)
In this podcast, Dr. Anil Chandrakar, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Medical Director of Kidney Transplantation at the Brigham and Women''s Hospital, discusses the overall purpose of the NIH''s CTOT initiative. He also describes the study design of his consortium''s clinical trial which is based on the study of kidney transplant recipients who develop denovo anti-HLA antibodies after transplantation.
New Developments in Therapies to Prevent or Treat Humoral Rejection
In this podcast, Dr. Milagros Samaniego describes new molecular targets for inhibiting antibody production by plasma cells and their precursor B cells. She also discusses the potential role for complement inhibitors such as ecalizumab for the treatment of antibody-mediated rejection. In addition, she discusses the mechanisms of action of proteosome inhibitors and their potential clinical role in treating humoral rejection and in desensitization protocols.
Transition of Post-Transplant Care from Pediatric to Adult Providers
Dr. Vikas Dharnidharka, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Florida, interviews Dr. Lorraine Bell, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at McGill University in Montreal on issues related to transitioning pediatric transplant recipients to adult health care providers. Dr. Bell discusses the current challenges to transitioning. She gives guidance on how to judge a patient''s readiness to transition and methods to ensure a smooth and effective transition.
Measurement of Glomerular Filtration Rate in Living Kidney Donors
Dr. Emilio Poggio is the Associate Staff Member of the Department of Nephrology and Hypertension and the Director of the Renal Function Laboratory at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. This podcast discusses the importance of accurately measuring GFR in potential donors and advice given to potential donors who inquire about changes in GFR post-donation.
Impact of a New Administration on Transplant Related Issues
Bill Applegate, Director of AST Government Relations, reviews accomplishments in the last Congress, talks about the work to be carried over to the next session of Congress and muses about the impact of a new administration on transplant related issues.
Growth and Development in Children with Organ Failure
Dr. Vikas Dharnidharka is Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Florida and Medical Director of the Pediatric Kidney Transplant Program at Shands Hospital. In this podcast, Dr. Dharnidharka discusses the influence of organ failure on growth and development, treatment strategies for maximizing growth in the presence of organ failure, and the effects of organ transplantation on growth and development. He further discusses the benefits and risks of treatment with growth hormone, and the potential benefits of steroid-free imunosuppression in pediatric transplantation.
Prevention Strategies for CMV in Transplant Recipients
Dr. Atul Humar, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Alberta interviews Dr. Raymund Razonable expert in CMV infections and Associate Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, regarding CMV infection in transplant recipients. The focus of this podcast is on prevention strategies for CMV. This includes a discussion on prophylaxis and pre-emptive strategies and how the two compare for preventing CMV disease. Practical guidance on disease prevention is discussed.
Sexual Dysfunction after Organ Transplantation
In this podcast, Dr. Margaret Bia describes the incidence and causes of sexual dysfunction, including decreased libido in both genders and erectile dysfunction in men, after organ transplantation. She emphasizes the need for talking openly to patients about sexual issues and discusses her own approach to evaluation and treatment.
Interplay Between Innate Immunity and Alloimmunity After Lung Transplantation
In this podcast, Dr. Scott Palmer discusses the evidence suggesting that the lung`s unique exposure to environmental antigens may account for high rates of acute and chronic rejection after lung transplantation. He describes the relationship between gastroesophageal reflux and bronchiolits obliterans as an example of innate immunity that may stimulate alloimunity and rejection in lung transplant recipients, and proposes future directions for basic and clinical research to explore these relationships.
Update on Public Policy Efforts in the Transplant Community
Mr. William Applegate, AST Director of Government Relations, provides an update on Public Policy efforts in Washington DC involving AST leaders and the status of several Federal legislative efforts important to the transplant community under consideration by the current Congress.
Control Groups for Immunosuppression Trials: AST Leaders Meet with FDA
Dr. Donald Hricik, AST Post Graduate Education Director, interviews Dr. Barbara Murphy, Professor of Medicine and Chief, Division of Nephrology at Mt Sinai Medical Center, NYC, and current AST President. In this podcast, Dr Murphy summarizes a recent meeting of AST leaders and FDA officials to discuss the importance proper control groups in trials involving new immunosuppressants for organ transplant recipients.
Safe Travel for the Transplant Recipient
Dr. Emily Blumberg, Professor of Medicine and Director of Transplant Infectious Diseases at the University of Pennsylvania interviews Dr. Camille Kotten, expert in travel related infections and Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Clinical Director, Transplant Infectious Diseases at the Massachusetts General Hospital, regarding travel related issues in transplant recipients. The focus of this podcast is on how to make travel safer for the transplant recipient and topics reviewed include vaccination, malaria prophylaxis, and management of travel related diarrhea.
Outcomes of Pregnancy After Live Kidney Donation
In this podcast, Michelle Josephson, MD, Professor of Medicine and Medical Director of Kidney Transplantation at the University of Chicago, discusses the safety of pregnancy in women who have previously donated a kidney for transplantation. Dr. Josephson includes data from two recent abstracts that suggest a small increase in the risk of preeclampsia in such women, and discusses her own current advice to potential female donors of childbearing age.
FDA Categorization of Drugs Based on Teratogenic Risk
Vincent Armenti, MD, PhD, Professor of Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University and Principal Investigator of the National Transplantation Pregnancy Registry discusses the FDA categorization of drugs based on teratogenic risk. Dr. Armenti discusses the categorization of commonly used immunosuppressants. He also comments on the recent FDA decision to change mycophenolate mofetil from category C to category D and the implications for clinical practice.
Insights into Cytomegalovirus
Dr. Emily Blumberg, an infectious diseases specialist and Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, discusses new insights into Cytomegalovirus with Dr. Raymond Razonable, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Consultant in Transplant Infectious Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Razonable reviews late onset CMV disease and issues related to prophylaxis and treatment of CMV.
Role of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) in Endothelial Cell Biology
Dr. David Briscoe, Associate Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at the Harvard Medical School and staff member at the Children''s Hospital Boston, discusses the general role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in endothelial cell biology. Dr. Briscoe also describes the complex interplay between TOR signaling and the actions of VEGF. Finally, speculates on whether down regulation of VEGF accounts for the anti-neoplastic and proteinuric effects of TOR inhibition.
EBV in Transplant Medicine
Dr. Emily Blumberg, an infectious diseases specialist and Associate Professor of Medicine with the University of Pennsylvania, interviews Dr. Michael Green on the topic of Epstein-Barr Virus and Post-Transplant Lymphoproliferative Disease (PTLD) and the Transplant Patient. Dr. Green is Professor of Pediatrics and Surgery in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Children''s Hospital of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
Update on the UNOS initiative to change rules for allocation of kidneys from deceased donors
Dr. Mark Stegall, Chief of Transplant Surgery and Professor of Medicine at the College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic Rochester, discusses the ongoing effort by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) to change the rules for allocation of kidneys from deceased donors based on projected life years from transplantation.
Immunization in the Transplant Patient
Dr. Emily Blumberg, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania interviews Dr. Robin Avery, section head of Transplant and Infectious Diseases and Professor of Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University. The topic is Immunization in the Transplanted Patient.
Influenza and the Transplant Patient
Dr. Emily Blumberg, an infectious diseases specialist and Associate Professor of Medicine with the University of Pennsylvania interviews Dr. Michael Ison on the topic of Influenza and the Transplant Patient. Dr. Ison is Assistant Professor, Division of Infectious Disease and Organ Transplantation, at Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine.
An Update on Clinical Islet Cell Transplantation
Dr. James Shapiro from the University of Alberta reviews the long-term outcomes of patients receiving islet cell transplants, commenting specifically on technical improvements, current immunosuppression protocols, and the problem of sensitization in patients with failed grafts.
Factors Effecting Live Kidney Donation
Dr. Steven Textor discusses factors effecting live kidney donation, hypertension, BMI, GFR, and a history of kidney stones.
The Role of Protocol Biopsies in Kidney Transplantation
In this conversation, Dr. Donald Hricik talks to Dr. David Rush, Professor of Medicine, Head of the Section of Nephrology, and Director of the Adult Renal Transplant Program at the University of Manitoba and Dr. Peter Nickerson, Professor of Medicine and Immunology, Director of Transplant Immunology Lab at the University of Manitoba. Dr. Rush and Dr. Nickerson discuss the role of protocol biopsies and urine biomarkers in kidney transplantation.
Kidney and Liver Transplantation in Patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus
In this conversation, Dr. Donald Hricik talks to Peter Stock, MD, Professor of Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Stock is also the Director of UCSF''s Pancreas and Eyelet Cell Transplant Program and the Surgical Director of UCSF''s Pediatric Renal Transplant Program. Dr. Stock describes outcomes of an ongoing multi-center trial, including lessons learned regarding optimal immunosuppression and management of co-pathogens in HIV+ patients who receive either kidney or liver transplants.
Newer techniques for detecting sensitization to HLA antigens
In this conversation Dr. Hricik talks to Dr. Andrea A. Zachary, Ph.D., D. ABHI, Professor of Medicine, and Director, Immunogenetics Laboratory at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine about work in her laboratory related to new and sensitive techniques for detecting sensitization to HLA antigens. Dr. Zachary also puts the issue of antibodies into perspective by addressing how often HLA antibodies are present before and after organ transplantation including how often they play a role in rejection of allografts.
The Role of Complement in Transplant Rejection
Dr. Peter Heeger, Professor of Medicine, member of the Transplant Institute, and the Institute of Immunology at the Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York, discusses his new work related to the role of complement in transplant rejection with Dr Donald Hricik, AST Director of Postgraduate Medical Education.