Acute Renal Failure — The Promise of New Therapies

Acute tubular necrosis is common in acutely ill hospitalized patients, with mortality rates exceeding 50 percent.1 The regenerative capacity of kidneys damaged by acute tubular necrosis is substantial, and minimizing renal injury or accelerating renal recovery may therefore have a substantial effect on patients' survival. Accordingly, identifying new therapeutic approaches to alter the natural history of the disease and reduce morbidity and mortality is a pressing challenge.2 In this issue of the Journal, Allgren et al. report the results of a prospective study of anaritide, a 25-amino-acid synthetic form of atrial natriuretic peptide, in patients with acute tubular necrosis.3 The . . .