Sunnyvale, CA 94087
Fax: (669) 233-2883
We often take the ability to urinate for granted, but when there are difficulties, it can impact a child’s life and well-being. My ultimate goal is to help patients achieve their best health possible, whether that involves a potential cure through surgery or greatly enhanced quality of life through innovative treatments.
It’s important to me that parents understand their child’s condition and his or her care options. As a previous high school teacher, I learned to explain things in simple terms and I welcome questions. I find great joy in talking with children and sharing common interests to put them at ease.
As a parent who has lost a child due to severe health issues, I deeply understand the fear and worry that parents can experience when their child is sick or has a health condition. That’s why I strive to provide the very best care possible with compassion, empathy, and understanding.
Loma Linda University School of Medicine Registrar, Loma Linda, CA, 05/26/2013
Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 09/21/2014
UCSD Surgery Residency, San Diego, CA, 06/30/2015
UCSD Urology Fellowships, San Diego, CA, 06/30/2019
Children's Hospital Colorado Pediatric Urology Fellowship, Aurora, CO, 06/30/2021
Urology, American Board of Urology
INTRODUCTION: We present a case series of neonates with anuric ESRD undergoing renal replacement therapy (RRT) and discuss the associated ethical implications of RRT in this population.METHODS: We reviewed patients who initiated RRT within 1 week of life due to anuric ESRD from 2009-2019 at a single tertiary center. Primary outcomes were receipt of renal transplant (RT), one-year survival, and overall survival.RESULTS: Five patients met the inclusion criteria. Two patients received an RT. One-year survival was 80%, while overall survival was 60% with a median follow-up of 18 months. In the 2 still-living patients who have not undergone RT, they are ineligible, one due to recent malignancy and the other from acquired cardiovascular comorbidities.CONCLUSION: Patients with anuric ESRD requiring RRT undergo multiple treatment challenges with low RT and survival rates. These findings should be shared with families considering intervention for cases of severe renal disease diagnosed prenatally.
View details for DOI 10.1038/s41372-022-01328-2
View details for PubMedID 35121797
The continued development of minimally invasive therapeutic implants, such as injectable hydrogels, necessitates the concurrent advancement of methods to best assess their biocompatibility via functional outcomes in vivo. Biomaterial implants have been studied to treat kidney disease; however, assessment of biocompatibility has been limited to biomarker and histological assessments. Techniques now exist to measure kidney function serially in vivo in murine studies via transcutaneous measurements of glomerular filtration rate (tGFR). In this study, adult male and female wild-type BalbC mice underwent right unilateral nephrectomy. The remaining solitary left kidney was allowed 4weeks to recover via compensatory hypertrophy, after which subcapsular injection of either saline or shear-thinning hyaluronic acid hydrogel was performed. Serial tGFR measurements before and after treatment were used to assess the effect of hydrogel injection on kidney filtration. Urine and serum biomarkers of kidney function, and kidney histology were also quantified. Hydrogel injection did not affect kidney function, as assessed by tGFR. Results were in agreement with standard metrics of serum and urine biomarkers of injury as well as histological assessment of inflammation. The model developed provides a direct functional assessment of implant compatibility for the treatment of kidney disease and impact on kidney function.
View details for DOI 10.1002/jbm.a.37317
View details for PubMedID 34590787