About

Mohammad Kamgar, MD, is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine and Nephrology faculty at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He completed his medical degree at Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2001, followed by an Internal Medicine Residency at UC Irvine in 2008 and a Fellowship in Kidney and Pancreas Transplant at UCLA in 2011. Dr. Kamgar's postgraduate training includes a Renal Disease and Hypertension Research Fellowship at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and clinical nephrology and transplant Fellowship at UCLA's Ronald Reagan Medical Center. He is board-certified in Medicine and Nephrology and has been recognized as Faculty of the American Society of Nephrology. His clinical practice is based at UCLA Nephrology Medical Plaza in Westwood, Los Angeles, where he specializes in the treatment of Chronic Kidney Disease, Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD), Lupus Nephritis, and IgA Nephropathy. Dr. Kamgar also works as a critical care nephrologist at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and serves as the Director of the Nephrology Fellowship Training Program, with a strong interest in medical education. His research interests include guidelines for lupus nephritis, limitations of angiotensin inhibition, and management of polycystic kidney disease, among others. He has been recognized as one of Top Doctors in Los Angeles Magazine in 2021 and is a Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Internal medicine
• Dermatology
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Intensive care medicine
• Pathology
• Pharmacology
• Bioinformatics
• Immunology

Selected publications

• PO:09:248 Real-world data on voclosporin for the treatment of lupus nephritis including use of concomitant biologic therapies: an analysis of the Enlight-LN registry

  2026-03-01

  articleOpen access

  medical records up to January 31 2025.Demographic, clinical, laboratory, and pathologic variables were evaluated, along with previous and concomitant therapies, disease activity indices (SLE-DAS, SLEDAI-2K, PGA), organ damage index (SLICC SDI) and safety. ResultsWe studied 18 patients (16 women/2 men), mean age 38.1610.35years (range 20-63).Baseline characteristics, prior starting ANI and LN subtypes are summarized in table 1.The most common renal manifestations at ANI initiation were proteinuria (50%), hematuria (27.8%), and renal insufficiency (11.1%).The mean number of immunosuppressive treatments (synthetic/biologic) received prior to ANI was 4.32.4(range 1-12).All of them had received belimumab, and 15 mycophenolate mofetil.The standard ANI regimen was 300 milligrams every 4 weeks, except in two patients who received loading doses (900 milligrams every 4 weeks for 3 months, then 300 milligrams every 4 weeks).In addition to corticosteroids, ANI was administered concomitantly with antimalarials (n=16), mycophenolate mofetil (n=11), tacrolimus (n=4), azathioprine (n=2), methotrexate (n=1), and voclosporin (n=1).A rapid (from the first month) and maintained significant improvement was observed in: a) disease activity (SLE-DAS, SLEDAI-2K, PGA) (figure 1) b) immunologic markers c) renal parameters (figure 2) and d) patients achieving LLDAS and DORIS remission (figure 3).After a mean follow-up of 8.85.5 months, a reduction in the number of relapses was observed, from a median [IQR] of 2 [0-3] to 0 [0-0].The organ damage index remained stable.All 18 patients remained on ANI, and the most relevant adverse events were herpes zoster (n=1) and hidradenitis suppurativa (n=1).The prednisone dose was decreased from 9.27.9mg/ day to 3.32 mg/day (p= 0.1).Conclusions To our knowledge, this is the first real-life study of ANI in LN.In refractory patients to multiple immunosuppressive therapies, we observed a rapid and maintained effectiveness in SLE activity and renal manifestations, with a good safety profile.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• RECOVID: Retrospective Observational Study of Renal Outcomes and Long-Term Mortality in Patients With COVID-19-Associated AKI, A Comparison Between Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Patients

  Kidney Medicine · 2025-06-18 · 3 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  <h2>ABSTRACT</h2><h3>Rationale & Objective</h3> Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication in patients with COVID-19 infections, with rates as high as 32% to 46%, and it has been associated with poor outcomes. However, the long-term renal and survival outcomes among hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and AKI are not fully understood. <h3>Study Design</h3> Single-center cohort study. <h3>Setting</h3> & Participants: 972 adult patients admitted with COVID-19 infection and AKI at a single large urban academic medical center from March 1 to March 30, 2022. Among these 411 (42.3%) did not receive a dose of a US FDA approved COVID-19 vaccine and 467 (48.0%) had completed the primary vaccine series. <h3>Exposure</h3> Patients admitted with COVID-19 infection and AKI were analyzed using vaccination status as the exposure. Additional exposures included demographics, comorbidities, and need for CRRT during hospitalization. <h3>Outcome</h3> The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes included long-term mortality, length of hospital stay, and the need for renal replacement therapy (RRT) at discharge. <h3>Analytical Approach</h3> The vaccinated and unvaccinated cohorts were characterized using descriptive analyses. The cohorts were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method and groups were compared using the log-rank test. Multivariable cox, logistic, and linear regression models were used for mortality, RRT status at discharge, and length of stay, respectively. <h3>Results</h3> Among 3527 hospitalized patients with a COVID-19 infection, AKI occurred in 972 patients. Of the 972 patients with AKI, 411 (42.3%) did not receive a dose of a US FDA approved COVID-19 vaccine and 467 (48.0%) had completed the primary vaccine series. Unvaccinated patients had a higher rate of requiring continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) during their hospitalization compared to vaccinated patients (15.8% vs 10.9%, <i>p</i> = 0.03). CRRT during hospitalization was significantly associated with in-hospital death (adjusted HR 2.82; 95% CI 1.88 to 4.25) and long-term follow-up death (adjusted HR 2.44; 95% CI 1.73 to 3.42). Unvaccinated patients also had a 2.56 (95% CI 1.52 to 4.30) times higher odds of being discharged on renal replacement therapy when compared to those who were vaccinated. In an adjusted multivariable analysis, those who were unvaccinated had both significantly increased in-hospital mortality (adjusted HR 5.54; 95% CI 3.36 to 9.13) and long-term follow-up mortality (adjusted HR 4.78; 95% CI 3.39 to 6.73) when compared to those who were vaccinated. <h3>Limitations</h3> There was a lack of data on the ventilation status and other indicators of infection severity in ICU patients who received CRRT. Additionally, data on booster COVID-19 vaccinations were lacking. <h3>Conclusions</h3> Vaccinated patients with a COVID-19 infection and AKI had an increase overall survival and were less likely to remain on renal replacement therapy at the time of discharge. Further studies evaluating the underlying etiologies of AKI and renal outcomes among patients admitted with COVID-19 infection in both vaccinated and unvaccinated patients is important in the development of targeted therapies and guidance on management and follow-up approaches to monitor renal recovery and model outcomes for providing CKD care for these patients. <h3>Plain-Language Summary</h3> Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication among unvaccinated and vaccinated patients hospitalized with COVID-19 infection. This study of 972 patients demonstrated that unvaccinated patients hospitalized with COVID-19 infection and AKI had increased in-hospital and long-term mortality compared to vaccinated patients. Among the 411 unvaccinated patients, a third died in the hospital and almost a half died at long-term follow-up compared to less than a fifth in vaccinated patients. Unvaccinated patients also had longer duration of hospitalizations and higher rates of needing CRRT during hospitalization and RRT dependence on discharge compared to vaccinated patients.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Sleep Patterns, Symptoms, and Mortality in Hemodialysis: A Prospective Cohort Study

  Kidney Medicine · 2025-02-11 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access

  Rationale & Objective: While sleep disorders are common in patients treated with hemodialysis, the impact of sleep patterns on survival is not well defined. We thus examined the association of specific sleep patterns with mortality in this population. Study Design: An observational cohort study. Setting & Population: In-center hemodialysis patients from the multicenter prospective NIH Malnutrition, Diet, and Racial Disparities in Chronic Kidney Disease (MADRAD) cohort. Exposure: Sleep patterns ascertained using protocolized sleep surveys from March 2014 to June 2019. Outcomes: Mortality. Analytical Approach: Cox proportional hazards models. Results: Among 452 participants, the mean age was 55±14 years, among whom 46% were women and the median follow-up was 3.5 years. In expanded case-mix models, shorter sleep duration (≤ median of observed values) was associated with higher mortality on dialysis and nondialysis days (ref: > median): HRs (95% CIs) 1.59 (1.09-2.31) and 1.51 (1.04-2.19), respectively. Patients who reported high frequencies (often/almost always) of difficulty falling asleep, feeling unrested, fatigue/exhaustion post-dialysis, or fatigue/exhaustion on nondialysis days had higher mortality (ref: never/rarely having these symptoms): HRs (95% CIs) 1.74 (1.17-2.58), 1.69 (1.1-2.5), 2.42 (1.41-4.16), and 1.73 (1.11-2.69), respectively. Moderate to high frequency of sleeping pill use was associated with higher mortality (ref: never/rare use): HRs (95% CIs) 2.07 (1.08, 3.97) and 2.00 (1.22, 3.28) for sometimes and often/almost always using sleeping pills, respectively. Sleeping outside of the primary sleep period (intra-dialytic sleeping and napping) was not associated with worse survival. However, patients reporting frequent apnea or restless legs syndrome had higher mortality. Limitations: Potential recall bias, residual confounding, absence of time-varying observations, and limitations in generalizability. Conclusions: In a well-characterized prospective multicenter hemodialysis cohort, patients who reported shorter sleep duration, sleeping difficulty or feeling unrested, moderate to frequent sleeping pill consumption, and sleep disorders (apnea and restless legs) had a higher mortality risk.

  PublisherDOI

• How I Treat Polycystic Kidney Disease in Pregnancy

  Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology · 2025-04-23

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Kappa-Restricted IgA Nephropathy Treated Successfully With Targeted-Release Budesonide

  Kidney International Reports · 2025-11-29

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Real-World Data on Voclosporin for the Treatment of Lupus Nephritis, Including Use of Concomitant Biologic Therapies: Analysis of the Enlight-LN Registry

  Journal of the American Society of Nephrology · 2025-10-01

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Real-World Data on Low Proteinuria with Sparsentan (SPAR) in Patients (Pts) with IgAN: A Case Series

  Journal of the American Society of Nephrology · 2025-10-01

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Improvement of Kidney Function Following Unilateral Nephrectomy in a Patient With Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic (CKM) Syndrome

  Cureus · 2025-04-30 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  Cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome is a significant contributor to the progressive decline in renal function, often leading to advanced chronic kidney disease. We report a 55-year-old man with a history of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension who was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and underwent unilateral nephrectomy for his treatment, which led to decreased kidney function. The patient showed signs of improvement in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and proteinuria after weight loss with combination therapy for CKM, including renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) inhibitors, sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT-2 inhibitors), and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA).

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Enlight-LN Registry: Baseline Demographics and Clinical Characteristics of an Initial Cohort of Patients Treated with Voclosporin for Lupus Nephritis in the United States

  Journal of the American Society of Nephrology · 2024-10-01

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Long-Term Renal Outcome and Mortality in Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19 Infection and AKI at UCLA

  Journal of the American Society of Nephrology · 2023-11-01

  articleSenior author

  Journal of the American Society of Nephrology 34(11S):p 719, November 2023. | DOI: 10.1681/ASN.20233411S1719a

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Niloofar Nobakht

  University of California, Los Angeles

  16 shared

• Anjay Rastogi

  12 shared

• Alireza A. Shamshirsaz

  9 shared

• Ramy M. Hanna

  University of California, Irvine

  9 shared

• Mir Reza Bekheirnia

  Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center

  8 shared

• Bagher Larijani

  Tehran University of Medical Sciences

  7 shared

• Navid Bouzari

  South Shore Hospital

  7 shared

• Farid Arman

  6 shared

Labs

• UCLA NephrologyPI

Awards & honors

• Faculty of the American Society of Nephrology
• Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine (2021)