KidneyWeb.net

Information for Pediatric Nephrology Patients,
Families and Friends
Developed by Robert S. Gillespie, MD, MPH
 Cute kid picture

Home
 Information
 Fun
 Other Sites
 Meet the Doctor


Other Sites with Educational Information
Introduction

Don't believe everything you read on the Internet!

The Internet is a great source of information, but unfortunately. some of the medical information posted there is biased or inaccurate.  For health information, there are some excellent sites, many mediocre sites, and some that are just plain nuts.  Choose your sites carefully.  As you surf the net, keep these things in mind:
  • Look for sites operated by non-profit or goverment organizations.  Sites which are trying to sell something are usually very biased. 
  • Most health information on the Internet is written with adults in mind.  Children are very different.  Even very accurate information about adults may not be relevant when the patient is a child.  The course of a disease, treatments and results are often very different--and usually much better--in pediatric patients.
  • Web sites can only give general information about most patients.  Since every person is different, the information you read may not apply in your individual case.  If you see something that worries you, talk to your doctor.  Only your doctor can give you personalized information about your specific situation.
The following sites are reputable sources of information. Happy surfing!
Robert S. Gillespie, MD

NLM MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

This is a vast source of information on every topic imaginable, including dozens of kidney topics.  It comes from the National Library of Medicine, part of the U.S. government's National Institutes of Health.  You can read it in English or Spanish.

English:  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/encyclopedia.html
Spanish:  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/encyclopedia.html

The National Institutes of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Also part of the National Instutites of Health, this site offers many adult-oriented fact sheets on various renal topics, and 6 fact sheets on renal disease in children.  A few of the adult topics and none of the pediatric ones are available in Spanish.  They are very professionally produced.  The pediatric topics are:

  • Overview of Kidney Diseases in Children
  • Childhood Nephrotic Syndrome
  • Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome
  • Treatment Methods for Kidney Failure in Children
  • Growth Failure in Children with Kidney Disease
  • School and Family Problems of Children with Kidney Failure
Adult fact sheets:  http://www.kidney.niddk.nih.gov
Pediatric fact sheets:  http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pubs/childkidneydiseases/index.htm

Kidney School

Kidney School is an outstanding web site with tons of information on kidney failure and its treatment.  The site is designed especially for patients, is easy to read, and has many illustrations.  This is an excellent site which I highly recommend if you looking for information on kidney failure, dialysis or kidney transplant.  The only downside is that it is written for adults and covers adult kidney disease (see cautions in Introduction above).  It does not cover kidney disease in children, so some of the information is not relevant or does not apply to young people.

http://kidneyschool.org

The National Kidney Foundation

The NKF is a non-profit organization which promotes kidney health.  NKF maintains dozens of patient information pages on a wide variety of topics.  A limited number of these pages are available in Spanish.

English:  http://www.kidney.org/atoz/index.cfm
Spanish:  http://www.kidney.org/atoz/atozTopic_sp.cfm

The Lupus Foundation of America

LFA is a non-profit organization which supports lupus patients.  LFA has a very detailed article on lupus in adults titled “What is Lupus?” by Robert Lahita, MD. 

English:  http://www.lupus.org/education/whatis.html
Spanish:  http://www.lupus.org/support/quees.html


Home
 Information
 Fun
 Other Sites
 Meet the Doctor