Nephrons, we proudly present the 2021 NephMadness Champion as voted by the Blue Ribbon Panel:

NephMadness Championship Matchup:

Check out how the crowd voted (the darker the shade of blue the more votes):

This is it, the moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally come and the 2021 NephMadness Champion has been named. While not as close of a matchup as what we saw in the Filtered Four, this was still a great game when multiple lead changes. However, Dialysis Timing in Surgical ICU just didn’t have the endurance that Implantable Bioartificial Kidney proved to have. Implantable Bioartificial Kidney was able to pull ahead in the last 5 minutes and win NephMadness bragging rights for the next year!

Implantable Bioartificial Kidney wins 6-3

Comments from the BRP:

“Implantable Bioartificial Kidney – Clearly I am biased, but I truly believe this is the future of Nephrology. Besides, I’d like to get in line to get one.”

“I am looking for a witty comment, but am still kind of salty that the bracket I was pulling for didn’t make it. That said, KRT in surgical ICU is likely to be the most practice changing. Why? Because it’s accessible to anyone in the hospital. An implantable bioartificial kidney is awesome in theory but not if you can’t get it. Let’s make boss moves in the ICU that hopefully lead to better outcomes. (Still sad Med Student Interest didn’t win, though.)”

“While the implantable bioartificial kidney may be a champion in the long run, scouting reports do not suggest any slam-dunks within the next five years. Going slow in starting dialysis in ICU patients may seem mundane, data from AKIKI, IDEAL-ICU and STARRT-AKI shows this to be championship material.”

“This was a tough one. I think that Dialysis Timing in Surgical ICU is important to discuss as an issue in our current daily practice currently but I voted for Implantable Bioartificial Kidney as I think more emphasis on this would help energize interest in Nephrology and demonstrate we are not a static field.”

“Implantable Bioartificial Kidney – Yay! The future is here. 🎉”

Did you miss any of the results? Catch up here: 

Saturated 16 | Effluent 8 | Filtered 4 | Left and Right Kidneys

Final Standings | Match Results | NephMadness 2021 | #NephMadness

How to Claim CME and MOC
US-based physicians can earn 1.0 CME credit and 1.0 MOC point for reading this region.

1. Register/log in to the NKF’s Professional Education Resource Center (PERC). If you select “Physician” in the drop-down menu during registration, the ABIM ID will pop up – make sure to complete this during registration to receive MOC points after course completion.
2. Review the activity, disclosure, and accreditation information.
3. Click “Continue” and review Course Instructions.
4. Complete Post-Test. Please note: By selecting “Yes” to the participation questions for each region, the corresponding Post-Test questions will appear. Click “Save Draft” to save your responses and finish later. When you are ready to submit your answers, click “Preview” to review all responses, then click “Submit.”
5. Click “Next” to complete the Evaluation form, then click“Submit.”
6. Claim 1.0 CME credit and 1.0 MOC point per region (up to 8.0 total for 8 regions of NephMadness).
7. Save/print your certificate.

The CME and MOC activity will expire on June 14th, 2021.