Niloofar Nobakht, MD
- Nephrology
About
Professional Titles
HS Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine- Nephrology
Director, Music & Kidney Program
Dr. Nobakht is a Nephrology faculty member at UCLA. Her current research and practice are focused on Hypertension, Polycystic Kidney Diseases, IgA Nephropathy and Women’s health in patients with chronic kidney disease.
She completed a kidney disease research fellowship at the University of Colorado Health Science Center in Denver (2003-2006) and the Internal Medicine residency training at the University of Southern California (2006-2009) followed by Clinical Nephrology Fellowship at the David Geffen School of Medicine, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (2010-2012) and serving as faculty member at UCLA since 2013.
She is board certified and Faculty of the American Society of Nephrology, with several publications. She has participated in a wealth of research and is a strong advocate of lifestyle medicine and its role in promoting overall health and well-being. She is the founding director of the Music and Kidney program at UCLA and featured as wellness champion. She received the 2025 Excellence Award from the Interdisciplinary Society for Quantitative Research in Music and Medicine (ISQRMM).
Dr Nobakht been elected as an executive councilor at large for Women in Nephrology and is the lead councilor of the WIN Speaker Bureau. She spearheads Women’s Health Research Projects through a multidisciplinary approach aimed at improving care for women with kidney disease and hypertension.
Her outpatient practice is located at UCLA Westwood Medical Plaza Nephrology Clinic.
Languages
Education
Medical Board Certification
Fellowships
Residency
Internship
Degree
Recognitions
- Excellence Award from the Interdisciplinary Society for Quantitative Research in Music and Medicine (ISQRMM), 2025
- AAMC Mid-Career Women Faculty Leadership Development, 2024
- Women In Nephrology Executive Councilor at Large
- See More
Related Clinical Trials
Locations
Hospital Affiliations
Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center
UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center
Medical Services
Areas of Focus
Videos
Research
Interests
Research Projects
2023-Present
IRB #22-000086
- REPKID: Patient-Reported Anticipatory Guidance for Reproductive Planning in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease-Multi Disciplinary Nephrology-MFM (PI)
2022-Present
IRB #22-001681
- MUSIC_CKD Dialysis: The impact of music and visual art on adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) on Dialysis (PI)
2021- Present
IRB #21-002159
- RECOVID: Renal Outcomes and Mortality in Patients with COVID-19 Infection at UCLA (PI)
Research Topics
- Hypertension Management
- Women's health
- Wellness-Lifestyle
Publications
- Nobakht, Niloofar, et al. "How I Treat Polycystic Kidney Disease in Pregnancy." Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (2025): 10-2215.PMID: 40266690
- Nobakht, Niloofar, et al. "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): 101020. PMID: 40607207
- Nobakht N, Afshar Y, Vaseghi M, Li Z, Donangelo I, Lavretsky H, Mok T, Han CS, Nicholas SB. Hypertension Management in Women With a Multidisciplinary Approach. Mayo Clin Proc. 2024 Dec 29:S0025-6196(24)00520-2. doi: 10.1016/j.mayocp.2024.10.005. PMID: 39736047.
- Music and Medicine: Promoting Harmony for Health (The American Journal of Medicine 2023)
- Music for Health: From Ear to Kidney.Clin J Am Soc Nephrol. 2022 PMID 35705509
- Advances in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease: A Clinical Review. Kidney Med. 2020 Feb, PMID: 32734239
- Blood Pressure and Living Kidney Donors: A Clinical Perspective," Transplant Direct. 2019 Sep, PMID: 31723583.
- Limitations of Angiotensin Inhibition," Nat Rev Nephrol. 2011 Jun;7(6):356-9. doi: 10.1038/nrneph.2011.29. Epub 2011 Apr 19.
- Differential distribution of muscle and skin sympathetic nerve activity in patients with end-stage renal disease. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2008 Dec; 105(6):1873-6. Park J, Campese VM, Nobakht N, Middlekauff HR. PMID: 18845779; PMCID: PMC2612470.
- Relationship between urinary albumin excretion and left ventricular mass with mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes. Clin J Am Soc Nephrol. 2006 Nov; 1(6):1187-90.Nobakhthaghighi N, Kamgar M, Bekheirnia MR, McFann K, Estacio R, Schrier RW. PMID: 17699346.
In the News
- 11 Things Kidney Doctors Do Nephrologists share the habits they personally avoid to lower the risk of kidney disease, Sep 2024
- Strategies for Ongoing Testing and Follow-Up of Patients with Diabetes, Nov 2024
- Women in Nephrology Speakers Bureau (ASN Kidney News)
- Women In Nephrology Speaker Bureau, Lead Councilor (womeninnephrology.org)
- Women In Nephrology, Niloofar Nobakht, MD, FASN (womeninnephrology.org)
- American Society Nephrology in Loop News June 2022
- Music for Health: a feature in CJASN examines the health implications of music—both as music therapy offered by a professional as well as music for personal enjoyment. Read more > (CJASN)
- Physician and Faculty Wellness Program Newsletter
- International Association for Music and Medicine eNews Letter, News of Interest. Music for Health: From Ear to Kidney July 2022
- American Society Nephrology in Loop News June 2022. Music for Health:a feature in CJASN examines the health implications of music (CJASN)
- Mindful Music Performances Promote Wellness of Medical Center Staff, Patients (Daily Bruin News) Feb 2019
- Hypertension Management in Women With a Multidisciplinary Approach
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How to Live a Healthy Lifestyle and Protect Your Heart and Kidneys
UCLA Health News
- My UCLA Story
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UCLA Health explores benefits of music for patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing dialysis
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No pain, no gain? Training too hard can have serious health consequences
- When it comes to nutrition and chronic disease, focus on the basics
- UCLA Health explores benefits of music for patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing dialysis
- Jan 2020 – Physician and faculty Wellness Program Newsletter UCLA physician wellness program “Wellness Champion."
Insurance
- Aetna
- Anthem Blue Cross
- Blue Shield of California
- Centivo
- Cigna
- First Health
- Health Net of California
- Interplan (part of HealthSmart)
- Medicare Advantage
- MultiPlan
- UFCM Health System
- Prime Health Services
- Private Healthcare Systems (PHCS)
- TRICARE
- UnitedHealthcare
The list of health care plans above may not be comprehensive and could change.
Please contact your benefits coordinator or health insurance company directly to verify coverage.
Visit our health insurance information page for more details.
Recognitions
-
Excellence Award from the Interdisciplinary Society for Quantitative Research in Music and Medicine (ISQRMM), 2025
-
AAMC Mid-Career Women Faculty Leadership Development, 2024
-
Women In Nephrology Executive Councilor at Large
-
Women In Nephrology Speaker Bureau, Lead Councilor
-
Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2021
- Featured Wellness Champion