Letter to the CRIC Community

Dear Members and Colleagues of the CRIC Community,

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has extended funding for the CRIC Study for a fifth phase which began in 2023! This will be the final planned phase of the CRIC study, during which the clinical centers will remain active for 3 additional years until 2026 and the Scientific and Data Coordinating Center (SDCC) will remain active for 5 years until 2028. During the 5th phase, the 7 Clinical Centers, comprised of 12 sites, will extend participant follow-up by conducting 2 study visits. Participants will provide information via questionnaires, undergo physical measures, and provide blood and urine samples. The principal focus for these study visits is to ascertain kidney and cardiovascular disease outcomes.

The major focus of this phase will be to:

• Ascertain clinical outcomes for Phase 5 participants
• Perform analyses linking long-term clinical outcomes with the data obtained during Phase 4 through home measurements of kidney function and heart function
• Integrate data from multiple domains to identify subphenotypes underlying the heterogeneity in clinical outcomes
• Create mechanisms for future data collection via linkages with external sources of health data
• Generate tools and resources to facilitate ongoing use of CRIC data and biospecimens by a broad group of investigators after the CRIC Study has ended

As announced in the spring of 2022, Dr. Laura Dember, MD succeeded Dr. Harold Feldman as Principal Investigator of the of the CRIC Study SDCC. Dr. Dember has been a co-investigator with the SDCC for many years. Dr. Dember is a nephrologist and clinical investigator with a major focus on interventions to improve outcomes in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). Dr. Dember brings a wealth of knowledge and experience conducting patient-oriented research including mechanistic studies and clinical trials in chronic kidney disease and ESKD.

Although CRIC is in its final active phase, the study is accepting ancillary study proposals for studies using existing data and samples, as well as new data collection from participants. We would be very happy to discuss new collaborations pursuing research on chronic kidney disease.