[Future perspectives of Japanese Society of Nephrology].

The Japanese Society of Nephrology is established in 1958 by Drs Oshima, Yoshitoshi and Ueda and since then has grown to the current membership over 6,000. The Society has recently been incorporated and is expected to play a more leadership role in clinical practice, research, education and training of professionals in nephrology and in dissemination of new knowledge to the public domain. The strength and growth of the Society have been clearly seen in the quality and the number of publications by its membership to such prestigious journals as Kidney International and American Journal of Physiology, and submission of abstracts to the annual meeting of the American Society of Nephrology. Proposals for the future of the Society are briefly outlined.