Research Updates in Kidney and Urologic Health

New in CHID

Each quarter, the National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse adds about 150 items to the kidney and urologic diseases (KU) subfile of the Combined Health Information Database (CHID). This database contains abstracts and ordering information for professional resources and patient education materials—such as books, pamphlets, videos, journal articles, and manuals—dealing with a variety of kidney and urologic topics. Recently, the KU subfile has begun to include resources available on the World Wide Web. CHID Online can be accessed at http://chid.nih.gov on the Internet. Among recent additions to the KU subfile are these materials on kidney disease in children and treatments for pain in interstitial cystitis.

Kidneys and Urinary Tract (for Teens)

The Nemours Foundation supports a number of children's health facilities and medical research programs, as well as the Nemours Center for Children's Health Media and the KidsHealth website, which contains articles on a variety of health topics written in different styles to appeal to parents, teenagers, and kids. Searching on terms like "kidney" or "urinary" in the KidsHealth search engine yields several entries for each audience. Kidneys and Urinary Tract (for Teens) provides basic information about the anatomy of the urinary tract and the functions of the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra. The article explains why the kidneys and urinary tract are important and describes diseases that hinder them, including urinary tract infections, kidney stones, vesicoureteral reflux, kidney failure, nephrotic syndrome, high blood pressure, and Wilm's tumor.

Kidneys and Urinary Tract (for Teens) can be accessed at www.kidshealth.org.

Interstitial Cystitis and Pain

This fact sheet from the Interstitial Cystitis Association (ICA) reviews pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatments to relieve or minimize the pain of interstitial cystitis (IC).

Drugs used to treat IC pain include nonopioid medications (aspirin, acetominophen, and NSAIDS), tricyclic antidepressants, pentosan polysulfate sodium (Elmiron), local anesthetics, anticonvulsants, benzodiazepines, antihistamines, tramadol (Ultram), and opioid medications. Nonpharmacologic treatments include diet modification, physical therapy, acupuncture, transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation, biofeedback, hypnosis, and cognitive therapy.

Single copies of Interstitial Cystitis and Pain are available for $1.25 to the public, $1 for ICA members. The brochure is available from the Interstitial Cystitis Association, 110 North Washington Street, Suite 340, Rockville, MD 20850. Phone: 301–610–5300. The publication can also be ordered online at www.ichelp.org.

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