Matthew A. Sparks
AJKD Social Media Advisory Board

Matthew A. Sparks, MD, is a physician-scientist in the Division of Nephrology at Duke University Medical Center and the Durham VA Medical Center in Durham, NC. He is the Associate Program Director for the Nephrology Fellowship Program and Director of Undergraduate Medical Research in the Department Medicine. He completed his residency in internal medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, AR where he also served as chief resident. He then completed his nephrology fellowship training at Duke with additional training in hypertension research. His lab is interested in understanding how both the renin angiotensin and prostanoid systems regulate blood pressure by altering blood flow to the kidney. The lab utilizes a combination of physiologic and molecular techniques in genetically modified mice to probe questions about how changes in the micro circulation of the kidney alter sodium excretion. The overarching goal of this research is to identify novel mechanisms to target drug therapy for patients with hypertension. His research is funded by a career development award from the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Research and Development (BXIK2BX002240) and a Scientist Development Grant from the American Heart Association. Click here to view his publications in pubmed. He is also interested in enhancing medical education in nephrology. He has served on the editorial board of ASN Kidney News and as past deputy editor of Renal Fellow Network. His publications include using social media in nephrology education and he is interested in finding novel ways to share and understand medical research and information. He is a member of the ASN Media and Communications Committee and the American Heart Association Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease Scientific & Clinical Education Lifelong Learning Committee. He also serves as Education Director for KidneyCon 2017.

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