Nephrology and Hypertension Faculty

Bio

Admin Contact
Nephrology Division
renaldiv@umn.edu 
612-624-9444

Summary
Dr. Bethany Birkelo earned her degree from Midwestern University Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2016. After completing a residency in internal medicine at Augusta University in 2019, she joined Vanderbilt University Medical Center for nephrology fellowship. At Vanderbilt, she completed additional training in clinical and translational research, culminating in a Masters of Science in Clinical Investigation in 2022. She served as an Instructor in the nephrology division at Vanderbilt until 2023, when she joined the faculty at University of Minnesota. Her research interests include acute kidney injury, cardiovascular complications of kidney disease, and sex differences in kidney disease. Her clinical interests include acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, hypertension, polycystic kidney disease and kidney stones.

Research Summary

Acute kidney injury; cardiorenal syndrome; sex differences in kidney and cardiovascular disease

Creative Activity Summary

American Society of Nephrology; American College of Physicians

Teaching Summary

Acute kidney injury; chronic kidney disease; cardiorenal syndrome

Service Summary

Resident of the Year -- Augusta University Medical Center Internal Medicine Residency (2019)

Clinical Summary

Chronic kidney disease; acute kidney injury; polycystic kidney disease; hypertension

Bio

Administrator Info
Name: Nephrology
Phone: 612-624-9444
Email: renaldiv@umn.edu
Fax: 612-626-3840
Mail: 717 Delaware Street SE, Suite 353, MMC 1932, Minneapolis, MN 55414

Summary
Dr. Mirna Boumitri joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota in 2010 after completing internal medicine residency and nephrology fellowship at The Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Boumitri's clinical interests include hypertension, pregnancy-related kidney issues, chronic kidney disease, and dialysis. She enjoys clinical education for medical students, residents, and fellows training at the University. Dr. Boumitri's research interests include hypertension, kidney disease progression, pregnancy, and quality improvement in chronic kidney disease management and dialysis. She was recognized as a Top Doctor by Minnesota Monthly Magazine. Dr. Boumitri is the Clinical Director of the Nephrology Division and the Medical Director for the University Dialysis Unit.

Clinical Summary

Hypertension; Pregnancy; Chronic Kidney Disease, Dialysis

Bio

Transplant nephrologist with interest in clinical outcomes research, donor-specific antibody formation and evolution, and teaching of trainees.

Teaching Summary

General and Transplant Nephrology education

Bio

Administrator Info
Name: Nephrology
Phone: 612-624-9444
Email: renaldiv@umn.edu
Fax: 612-626-3840

Summary
Dr. Drawz earned his medical degree from the University of Minnesota and completed his Internal Medicine Residency and Nephrology Fellowship at Case Western Reserve University. His research interests include hypertension, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, and acute kidney injury. He is the recipient of an R01 from NHLBI. Dr. Drawz's clinical interests include hypertension, chronic kidney disease, and inpatient nephrology.

Research Summary

• Hypertension
• Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring
• Acute Kidney Injury
• Health Disparities

Research Projects

• Blood Pressure and Kidney Function - SPRINT vs Electronic Health Record Data (5R01HL136679 from NHLBI)
• Preventing Cognitive Decline by Reducing BP Target Trial (PCOT; 1R61AG068486 from NIA)
• MN EHR Consortium COVID-19 Project

Clinical Summary

• Chronic Kidney Disease
• General Nephrology
• Hypertension

Bio

Administrator Info
Name: Nephrology Division
Phone: 612-624-9444
Email: renaldiv@umn.edu
Fax: 612-626-3840

Summary
Dr. El-Rifai earned her medical degree from the American University of Beirut. She completed her internal medicine residency, nephrology fellowship at University Hospitals of Cleveland, Case Western Reserve University and transplant nephrology fellowship at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. She then joined the Nephrology faculty at MetroHealth, Case Western Reserve University where she initiated an outpatient transplant and glomerulonephritis clinic. She also served as the medical director of the Outpatient Hemodialysis unit at MetroHealth.

Research Summary

• Recurrent Glomerulonephritis Post Transplant
• Immune Monitoring in Kidney/Pancreas Transplant
• Genetic Testing in Kidney Transplantation
• BK Nephropathy

Teaching Summary

• Immunosuppression

• Transplant Immunobiology

Clinical Summary

• BK Nephropathy
• Pregnancy in Kidney Transplant
• Malignancy after Kidney Transplant

Bio

Administrator Info
Name: Nephrology
Phone: 612-624-9444
Email: renaldiv@umn.edu
Fax: 612-626-3840
Mail: 717 Delaware Street SE
Suite 353
MMC 1932
Minneapolis, MN 55414

Summary 
Dr. Sarah Elfering has earned her medical degree from the University of Minnesota Medical School. She completed her Internal Medicine Residency at the Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Oregon and returned to the University of Minnesota Medical School for her Nephrology Fellowship. Dr. Elfering's clinical and research interests include medical management of kidney stones, chronic kidney disease and dialysis.

Research Summary

• Medical Management of Kidney Stones
• Chronic Kidney Disease
• Dialysis
• Genetic Kidney Diseases

Research Projects

• Contamination Resistant Interconnection for Reducing Peritoneal Dialysis Associated Peritonitis (2020-2021)
• I-Corps: Sterile Connection Interface Technology (2019-2020)
• Reducing infection risks on in pediatric patients on peritoneal dialysis (2019)

Clinical Summary

• Medical Management of Kidney Stones
• Chronic Kidney Disease
• Dialysis
• Internal Medicine
• Genetic Kidney Diseases

Bio

Administrator Info
Name: Nephrology
Phone: 612-624-9444
Email: renaldiv@umn.edu
Fax: 612-626-3840
Mail: 717 Delaware Street SE, Suite 353, MMC 1932, Minneapolis, MN 55414

Summary
I obtained my medical degree from Faculte de Medecine- Universite Saint-Joseph in Beirut, Lebanon. My internal medicine residency was at Albert Einstein College of Medicine/ Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, New York, and my Nephrology fellowship at George Washington University Hospital in Washington, DC. I also completed an International Master in Organ donation and Transplantation at the University of Barcelona, Spain. I am board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology and also certified since 2013 in Hypertension by the American Society of Hypertension that has since merged with the American Heart Association. I am chair of the Young Nephrologists Committee of the International Society of Nephrology (ISN) and a member of the 2021 cohort of the Emerging Leaders Program of the ISN. My clinical and research interests include Onco-Nephrology, Monoclonal Gammopathy of Renal Significance (MGRS), Hypertension, and Home Dialysis.

Research Summary

Onco-Nephrology; Monoclonal Gammopathy of Renal Significance (MGRS); Hypertension; Home Dialysis

Clinical Summary

Onco-Nephrology; Monoclonal Gammopathy of Renal Significance (MGRS); Hypertension; Home Dialysis

Bio

My interest is in onconephrology, monoclonal protein related kidney disease and glomerulonephritis.

Research Summary

Clinical characteristics of monoclonal gammopathy of renal significance Kidney disease in cancer patients Glomerulonephritis Peritoneal dialysis

Clinical Summary

Onconephrology; Glomerulonephritis; Peritoneal dialysis; Hypertension

Bio

I obtained my Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery from Beirut Arab University in Lebanon. I did my Internal Medicine residency training at the American University of Beirut (2007-2010). Afterwards, I joined Duke University in Durham, North Carolina where I did another three years of residency in Internal Medicine. I did my nephrology fellowship at Johns Hopkins University (2013-2015). I also did a Glomerular Disease Study & Trial Consortium (GlomCon) Fellowship (2021-2022).I joined the American University of Beirut, Lebanon from 2015 to 2022. I served as a Vandyke Medical Educator at the school of Medicine and the Nephrology Fellowship Program Director from 2018 to 2022. I find great pleasure in teaching medical students, residents, and fellows.I joined the University of Minnesota as an Assistant Professor of Medicine in May 2022. I am American Board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology. My clinical interests include glomerular diseases, pregnancy-related kidney diseases, monoclonal gammopathy of renal significance (MGRS), improving care for chronic kidney disease patients and conservative kidney management.

Research Summary

Glomerular Diseases Monoclonal Gammopathy of Renal Significance (MGRS) Conservative Kidney Management Pregnancy-related Kidney Diseases Conflict Nephrology Medical Education

Clinical Summary

Glomerular Diseases; Monoclonal Gammopathy of Renal Significance (MGRS); Conservative Kidney Management; Pregnancy-related Kidney Diseases

Bio

Administrator Info
Name: Nephrology Division
Phone: 612-624-9444
Email: renaldiv@umn.edu

Summary
Born in India, obtained a medical degree in ASRAM medical college, did a residency at HCMC, Minneapolis, and completed a Nephrology fellowship at the University of Minnesota. Clinical expertise in hypertension and chronic kidney disease.

Research Summary

• Chronic Kidney Disease
• Glomerulonephritis

Teaching Summary

Hypertension; Chronic Kidney Disease; Dialysis

Clinical Summary

Hypertension; Chronic Kidney Disease

Bio

Dr. Mauer completed his Fellowship in Pediatric Nephrology at the University of Minnesota (UMN) and joined the faculty there in 1972. He was promoted to the rank of Professor of pediatrics in 1979. He was Co-Director of the Pediatric Nephrology Division from 1992 to 2009. His early clinical interests were in the management of acute and chronic kidney failure, helping to adapt hemodialysis and kidney transplantation to infants and small children. His more basic research efforts initially focused primarily on diabetic kidney disease, the cause of nearly half of chronic kidney failure in the Western world. Initially in animal studies and then in research kidney biopsies in humans, he helped to describe the structural changes in the kidney in diabetes that lead to kidney failure. He explored the cellular basis of diabetic kidney disease (DKD) in a series of studies in cells cultured from patients with diabetes. He showed that the structural changes of DKD were reversible by cure of insulin dependent (type 1) diabetes by pancreas transplantation. He was Principle Investigator of two large international multicenter NIH funded clinical treatment trials in type 1 diabetes. In the last 12 years he has also studied a relatively rare form of inherited kidney injury related to Fabry disease and has helped to elucidate the kidney structural basis of this disorder. His lab trained more than 20 young investigators, many of whom remain actively involved in research. He has published more than 350 research articles and 90 book chapters. For 16 years he was Chair of the UMN Medical School Committee of Student Scholastic Standing, helping medical students to overcome academic difficulties. He also was Chair of the Department of Pediatrics Promotions Committee for more than 10 years. He is a member of the UMN Academy of Excellence in Health Research. Although semi-retired he remains actively engaged in research.

Clinical Summary

Fabry Disease; Pediatric kidney transplantation; Pediatric dialysis