IGA Nephropathy: Facts and Treatments
John Smith MA
M Awad MD (Ed.)
Smashwords Edition
****
Copyright 2011 John Smith M, M Awad MD
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Contents
Five: Diagnosis and Treatment:
Six: Information on Investigational Therapies
Seven: Organizations related to IgA Nephropathy
Eight: How the Adrenals and Kidneys Work
Nine: Glossary of Medical Terms
Appendix A: Internet Resources / Further Reading
IgA nephropathy is a chronic kidney illness that sometimes first appears during puberty and in young adults, affecting three times as many men as women. It is also known as IgAN, Berger’s disease, synpharyngitic glomerulonephritis and IgA nephritis. IgA nephropathy gets its name because Immunoglobulin A (IgA) deposits in the renal glomerulus - a capillary tuft that is the first step in filtering blood for urine production.
The disease is a form of glomerulonephritis - a condition where the kidneys’ glomeruli become inflamed. It typically follows an upper respiratory infection or a gastrointestinal infection. The disease is the most common type of glomerulonephritis.
IgA nephropathy was first described by Heberden in 1801, when he noted that a five-year-old child had hematuria, purpura on the legs, abdominal pain and hematochezia (passage of fresh blood from the anus). However, it wasn’t until 1968 that Jean Berger and Hinglais described IgA deposits in the glomerulus. In the past, IgA nephropathy was thought to be a benign disease. However, long term studies have shown that the disease is far from benign - it frequently advances to renal failure in 25 to 30 percent of patients over a 20 year period. Renal failure may occur 30 years or more after the initial infection. Remission is, unfortunately, rare: only 5 percent of cases will fully recover. However, ten year survival rates are fairly high, at between 80 and 90 percent.