Houston VA Doctor Honored with Prestigious National Kidney Foundation Award

Dr. Navaneethan is the Chief of the Renal Section at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center and Associate Chief of the Section of Nephrology at Baylor College of Medicine. He also co-leads the Resources and Services Module of the Consortium for Translational and Precision Health at Baylor College of Medicine.

The Garabed Eknoyan Award recognizes individuals who have promoted the NKF's mission to improve the lives of people with kidney disease through exceptional contributions to key NKF initiatives or clinical research in the field of kidney disease.

“It is an absolute privilege to be recognized with this award named after an icon in nephrology whose work has touched the lives of so many with kidney disease,” said Navaneethan. “This award highlights the need for collective effort as a community to combat the rising kidney disease burden that impacts our patients and their families. I am proud to work at the Houston VA providing clinical care for our Veterans and conducting research to improve their outcomes.”

Dr. Navaneethan is a clinician-scientist with major research interests in clinical trials for diabetic kidney disease, obesity and intentional weight loss in chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease in kidney patients, health services research, and systematic reviews in nephrology. According to Dr. Kirk Campbell, president of the National Kidney Foundation, Navaneethan has been a pioneer in utilizing electronic medical records to optimize care delivery for the kidney disease population.

“Dr. Navaneethan lives and breathes the NKF’s mission,” Campbell said. “We are proud to recognize him for his dedication to improving the health and well-being of others through his innovative work and compassionate care. He has made a significant impact on the lives of countless individuals, setting a remarkable example of what this award represents.”

Dr. Navaneethan serves on various committees of the National Kidney Foundation. He is involved in multiple clinical studies and serves as an associate editor for the American Journal of Kidney Diseases. He has been appointed to editorial boards of other leading nephrology journals and is a workgroup member of several key committees, including the VA/DoD Chronic Kidney Disease Guidelines and the ASN guidance statement on obesity and kidney disease.

Kidney Disease and Veterans: In the United States, more than 35 million adults are estimated to have kidney disease, and approximately 90 percent don’t know they have it. About 1 in 3 adults in the U.S. are at risk for kidney disease. Risk factors include diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and family history.

According to the American Kidney Fund, Veterans have higher rates of chronic kidney disease than the general U.S. population. While kidney disease affects 1 in 7 Americans, it affects about 1 in 6 Veterans, including more than 40,000 VA-enrolled Veterans with kidney failure (end-stage renal disease) who rely on dialysis or a kidney transplant to survive.

Maureen Dyman, Communications Director

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