A new five-year study of chronic kidney disease in children will draw on University of Florida informatics expertise to investigate how medication and blood pressure monitoring can improve outcomes. Nearly half of children with the disease also suffer from hypertension, and controlling blood pressure may help them avoid dialysis or a transplant.
Mei Liu, Ph.D., professor in the UF College of Medicine’s Department of Health Outcomes and Biomedical Informatics, will lead the computational side of the study, funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). Her team will design algorithms to identify eligible participants, track blood pressure data, and manage study data for UF across the trial.
The 700-patient randomized controlled trial will compare two blood pressure medications and evaluate blood pressure monitoring strategies to help clinicians make the best choices for their patients. Participants will be identified and recruited through PCORnet® Clinical Research Networks, which include the OneFlorida+ Clinical Research Network. Liu serves on the OneFlorida+ Executive Committee, along with UF Distinguished Professor Elizabeth Shenkman, Ph.D., and Mike Mugavero, M.D., from the University of Alabama.
Beginning officially in October 2026, the study titled “Alternative Approaches for Managing Blood Pressure in Children with Chronic Kidney Disease,” also known as PRESERVE 2.0, will build on findings from the original PRESERVE study, which will issue its final report that same month. PRESERVE 2.0 is coordinated by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and its co-principal investigators, Michelle Denburg, MD, and Christopher Forrest, MD.