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Glomerulonephritis
- What is glomerulonephritis?
- Glomerulonephritis indicates the presence of an inflammation at the
level of the glomerulus. The glomerulos is the basic functional unit of
the kidney
- What are the symptoms of Glomerulonephritis?
- Patients with the disease may present with
- Swelling of the face or swelling of the feet or swelling of the
whole body
- The blood pressure may be elevated
- The urine color may be Coca Cola or tea colored
- The volume of the urine may decrease
- There may be frank blood in the urine
- Some times the disease is clinically silent and is only suspected
on urine analysis. Urinalysis would show either protein in the urine
or microscopic blood in the urine
- What are the causes of glomerulonephritis?
- There are many causes and diseases which may be associated with this
condition. These include infectious diseases which include hepatitis,
HIV infection , Malaria and other infections. Strep throat may be
complicated by glomerulonephritis. Other causes include IV drug use, the
presence of an autimmune condition such as lupus or other diseases which
cause antibodies to attack the kidney.
- Many patients may not have any obvious cause and the disease is
described as idiopathic
- What tests are needed to confirm the diagnosis?
- Depending on the underlying cause glomerulonephritis may be diagnosed
based on the clinical picutre and the presence of protein or blood in the urine.
In most cases kidney biopsy has to be performed to determine the type
of glomerulonephritis and plan therapy
- What is the prognosis of Glomerulonephritis?
- This depends largely on the type of glomerulonephritis. There are many
types, some resolve spontaneously even without treatment while others
require multiple medications and prolonged therapy
- In general glomerulonephritis is not a life threatening condition, but
it may be a kidney threatening condition in the sense that some patients
may end up losing their kidney function and requiring dialysis for
survival
- What is the treatement of glomerulonephritis?
- Treatment depends on the type of glomerulonephritis. Treatment may
include blood pressure medications, steroids or prednisone , or other
drugs
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