Katrina Bargender

VPPRN TAK Patient-Partner and Patient Champion

Why do I participate in research?

“My name is Katrina Bargender, and I was diagnosed with vasculitis, specifically Takayasu’s arteritis, at the age of 14 after losing the vision in my left eye. I received my diagnosis of vasculitis at my local children’s hospital, and I was treated there until I transitioned to seeing adult providers at the age of 19. I missed a lot of high school due to symptoms of my disease, but I was able to attend college, and I recently graduated with my bachelor’s degree in biomedical science.

I chose to become a patient research partner to expand patient powered research to include the experiences of children and teens with vasculitis and their parents. By participating in the pediatric vasculitis registry, you can help doctors understand how vasculitis affects children differently than adults so that guidelines can be developed specifically for children with vasculitis in areas such as medication dosing and duration and risk of relapse and recurrence of disease. Your participation will also allow us to better understand the impact of vasculitis on school and quality of life in children. Please join me in advancing pediatric vasculitis research today!”

-Katrina Bargender

BETTER STUDIES | BETTER ANSWERS | BECAUSE OF YOU

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