About

Linda Awdishu, Pharm.D., MAS, is the Department Chair of Pharmacy Practice and Sciences and a Professor of Clinical Pharmacy at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Her research program is centered around the pharmacokinetics and dosing of drugs in kidney diseases, estimation of kidney function, and the clinical phenotyping, epidemiology, and biomarkers of drug-induced kidney injury. As an academic pharmacist specialized and practicing in nephrology, her aim is to enhance scientific research related to drug exposure and toxicity in kidney diseases. She is a co-investigator in Core A of the NIH-funded UAB-UCSD O’Brien Center for Acute Kidney Injury Research, where she has developed registry studies of acute kidney injury (AKI), conducted research on novel biomarkers of AKI, and developed an international consortium investigating the pharmacogenomics of drug-induced kidney injury. Her educational background includes a B.S. in Pharmacy from the University of Toronto, a Pharm.D. from the University of Colorado, and a Masters of Advanced Studies in Clinical Research from UC San Diego. Her numerous awards and honors reflect her contributions to clinical pharmacy, nephrology, and education, including the UCSD Health Sciences Department/Division Excellence in Mentoring Award, Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology, and multiple teaching awards. She has also held leadership roles in developing clinical faculty practice sites, creating protocols for renal drug prescribing, and leading multidisciplinary programs in chronic kidney disease at UC San Diego Health System.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Intensive care medicine
• Internal medicine
• Medical education
• Urology

Selected publications

• Kidney disease and heart failure: recent advances and current challenges: conclusions from a Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) Controversies Conference

  Kidney International · 2026-03-06

  articleOpen access

  Heart failure (HF) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) frequently coexist, which elevates the risks of hospitalization, disease progression, and death. Despite advances in treating each condition independently, many challenges remain in diagnosing and managing them in combination. In March 2024, Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) held the Controversies Conference on Kidney Disease and Heart Failure: Recent Advances and Current Challenges. Discussions highlighted the complex, bidirectional relationship between HF and CKD, including shared risk factors and overlapping pathophysiology as well as nuances in interpreting biomarkers such as natriuretic peptides and serum creatinine. Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors, and emerging agents such as finerenone and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists can have benefits in both populations of patients with HF and CKD, though evidence in advanced CKD remains limited. Importantly, small declines in kidney function after initiating guideline-directed HF therapies generally do not require discontinuation, as these declines are often hemodynamic in nature and not associated with poor outcomes. The group highlighted the need for CKD-specific HF diagnostic thresholds and refined acute kidney injury definitions in HF. It is important for future cardiovascular and kidney trials to include relevant end points, such as kidney function trajectories, symptom burden, and quality of life. To improve care for individuals with HF and CKD, a more integrated approach to management, rooted in individualization, clinical context, and shared therapeutic goals, is needed.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Kidney Disease and Heart Failure: Recent Advances and Current Challenges

  JACC Heart Failure · 2026-03-07 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  Heart failure (HF) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) frequently coexist, which elevates the risks of hospitalization, disease progression, and death. Despite advances in treating each condition independently, many challenges remain in diagnosing and managing them in combination. In March 2024, Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) held the Controversies Conference on Kidney Disease and Heart Failure: Recent Advances and Current Challenges. Discussions highlighted the complex, bidirectional relationship between HF and CKD, including shared risk factors and overlapping pathophysiology as well as nuances in interpreting biomarkers such as natriuretic peptides and serum creatinine. Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors, and emerging agents such as finerenone and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists can have benefits in both populations of patients with HF and CKD, though evidence in advanced CKD remains limited. Importantly, small declines in kidney function after initiating guideline-directed HF therapies generally do not require discontinuation, as these declines are often hemodynamic in nature and not associated with poor outcomes. The group highlighted the need for CKD-specific HF diagnostic thresholds and refined acute kidney injury definitions in HF. It is important for future cardiovascular and kidney trials to include relevant end points, such as kidney function trajectories, symptom burden, and quality of life. To improve care for individuals with HF and CKD, a more integrated approach to management, rooted in individualization, clinical context, and shared therapeutic goals, is needed.

  PublisherDOI

• Collaborative development of a shared objective structured clinical examination to assess the pharmacist patient care process across two PharmD programs

  Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning · 2026-01-08

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, acute kidney injury, fluid balance, and continuous renal replacement therapy: Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) and Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) joint consensus conference

  Intensive Care Medicine · 2026-05-06

  articleOpen access

  Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is increasingly being utilized for life-threatening cardiac and/or respiratory failure refractory to conventional treatment. Acute kidney injury (AKI) and fluid balance disorders commonly occur both before and during ECMO, with approximately half of cases receiving treatment with continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT). Acute kidney injury, fluid balance disorders, and CRRT influence both short- and long-term outcomes in this population. The 36th Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) meeting was held in June 2025 to develop multidisciplinary international expert recommendations for AKI, fluid balance, and CRRT during ECMO across the age spectrum. This work encompassed five working groups: 1) epidemiology, risk factors, and outcomes of AKI and CRRT, 2) fluid management and outcomes, 3) indications for CRRT and fluid removal during ECMO, 4) best practices for performing CRRT during ECMO, and 5) biomarkers, extracorporeal blood purification, and drug pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. As part of this work, knowledge gaps and research priorities were identified.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Pharmaceutical Waste in Nephrology: Addressing Drug Disposal in Dialysis Care

  Kidney News · 2025-05-07

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• KDIGO 2024 clinical practice guideline on evaluation and management of chronic kidney disease: A primer on what pharmacists need to know

  American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy · 2025-04-08 · 17 citations

  reviewOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  PURPOSE: To review the key updates in the 2024 KDIGO clinical practice guideline for the evaluation and management of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and highlight the essential role of pharmacists in implementing these recommendations. SUMMARY: The updated guideline introduces significant changes in CKD management, including the use of validated equations for estimating glomerular filtration rate (GFR) for drug dosing, with incorporation of serum cystatin C into GFR estimates for specific patient populations, and an emphasis on a comprehensive approach to delay disease progression. The guideline recommends sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) therapy for kidney disease with proteinuria, with or without diabetes, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors (RAASi) blood pressure control and proteinuria management, and statins to reduce the risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. New evidence supports the use of finerenone in patients with type 2 diabetes and CKD, and GLP-1 receptor agonists for their kidney-protective effects. The guidelines also emphasize the importance of nephrotoxin stewardship and prevention of acute kidney injury through patient education on sick day medication management. CONCLUSION: Pharmacists play a crucial role in implementing these updated guidelines through comprehensive medication management, nephrotoxin stewardship, drug dosing adjustments, and patient education. Their involvement in interprofessional care teams is essential for optimizing health outcomes in patients with CKD.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Expanding the role of PoCUS in tailoring diuretic strategies for congestion management in critical care: authors’ reply

  Intensive Care Medicine · 2025-02-27

  letter
  PublisherDOI

• The role of sex and gender in acute kidney injury—consensus statements from the 33rd Acute Disease Quality Initiative

  Kidney International · 2025-01-21 · 23 citations

  articleOpen access

  Sex differences exist in acute kidney injury (AKI), and the role that sex and gender play along the AKI care continuum remains unclear. The 33rd Acute Disease Quality Initiative meeting evaluated available data on the role of sex and gender in AKI and identified knowledge gaps. Data from experimental models, pathophysiology, epidemiology, clinical care, gender, social determinants of health, education, and advocacy were reviewed. Recommendations include incorporating sex and gender into research along the bench-to-bedside spectrum; analyzing sex-stratified results; evaluating the effects of sex chromosomes, hormones, and gender on outcomes; considering fluctuations of hormone levels; studying the impact gender may have on access to care; and developing educational tools to inform patients, providers, and stakeholders. This meeting report summarizes what is known about sex and gender along the AKI care continuum and proposes an agenda for translational discovery to elucidate the role of sex and gender in AKI across the lifespan.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• DPP-4 Inhibitor Utilization Post-Lung Transplant

  American Journal of Transplantation · 2025-08-01

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Use of Cystatin C vs. Creatinine for Intravenous Vancomycin Dosing in Inpatients

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

  article
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Melanie S. Joy

  University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

  25 shared

• Ravindra L. Mehta

  University of California, San Diego

  14 shared

• Daniela Ponce

  Universidade de Santa Cruz do Sul

  14 shared

• Jennifer Namba

  14 shared

• Marlies Ostermann

  14 shared

• A. Feist

  University of California, San Diego

  14 shared

• Jorge Cerdá

  Albany Medical Center Hospital

  13 shared

• Stuart L. Goldstein

  Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center

  13 shared

Education

• PharmD, Pharmacy

  University of Colorado Denver

  2008

• MAS, Extension Graduate Studies

  University of California, San Diego

  2007

• BScPhm, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy

  University of Toronto

  1999

• BSc, St. Michael's College

  University of Toronto

  1995

Awards & honors

• UCSD Health Sciences Department/Division Excellence in Mento…
• Preceptor of the Year Award, UCSD Pharmacy Practice Residenc…
• Excellence in Clinical Services, UCSD SSPPS (2024)
• Preceptor Excellence Award, UCSD SSPPS (2023)
• UCSD Inclusive Excellence Award Recipient for Academic Affai…