University of Iowa Children's Hospital has been ranked 25th in the nation for the specialty area of kidney disorders by U.S.News & World Report's 2009 edition of "America's Best Children's Hospitals."

Full ranking information will be published online and featured in the August issue of U.S.News & World Report, available on newsstands starting July 21

"We are always striving to provide the best care to our pediatric patients and their families. Earning this ranking is a great honor and a testament to the expertise and dedication of our staff," said Michael Artman, MD, physician-in-chief at UI Children's Hospital and professor and head of pediatrics at the UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine.

"Under the leadership of Dr. Patrick Brophy, our team of health care providers in pediatric kidney disorders has been incredibly active and successful in providing exceptional care for children with kidney disease and advancing related research," Artman added.

Brophy, director of the Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Dialysis and Transplantation at UI Children's Hospital, said kidney disorders are a challenging problem among infants and children and often require intensive, complex, and long-term medical care.

"As an academic medical center, we are at the forefront of research efforts to understand these conditions and provide the latest cutting-edge treatment and education to our patients," Brophy said. "I am extremely pleased and proud for our entire team."

The 2009 "America's Best Children's Hospitals" is the most extensive listing of its kind and rates the nation's top 30 hospitals in general pediatrics and six pediatric specialties.

The specialty rankings in "America's Best Children's Hospitals" are based on a combination of reputation, outcome, and care-related measures such as nursing care, advanced technology, credentialing, and other factors

Earlier this year, UI Children's Hospital was ranked 20th in the nation by Parents magazine.

University of Iowa Children's Hospital serves children and their families at its main campus in Iowa City and satellite clinics in communities throughout the region. A 190-bed "hospital within a hospital," UI Children's Hospital benefits from the sophisticated services and comprehensive resources of UI Hospitals and Clinics.

Learn more about the U.S. News ranking from Patrick Brophy, MD

University of Iowa Children's Hospital

U.S.News & World Report

Michael Artman, MD,

Patrick Brophy, MD

Kidney stones in children

Department of Pediatrics Division of Nephrology, Hypertension, Dialysis and Transplantation