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National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

What are Glomerular Diseases?

What are Glomerular Diseases?

Do you know if you have a glomerular disease? Learn about a condition that commonly leads to CKD.


Last reviewed on 08/15/2023

Did you know glomerular disease is one of the most common causes of chronic kidney disease (CKD)? Glomerular disease occurs when the kidney’s glomeruli, which form the kidney’s filtering system that allows waste and extra water to pass, are damaged. Learn more about the symptoms, diagnosis, and causes of glomerular diseases.*

 

How does glomerular disease affect the kidneys?

Within each kidney are tiny clusters of looping blood vessels called glomeruli, where blood is filtered. There are approximately one million glomeruli in each kidney. 

Glomerular diseases harm the glomeruli and allow protein and sometimes red blood cells to leak into the urine. Sometimes the disease will also affect the clearance of waste products by the kidney, causing those wastes to collect in the blood. 

What are common symptoms of glomerular disease?

There are multiple symptoms of glomerular disease which also may be the first signs of kidney disease. The symptoms include:

  • Albuminuria (proteins in the urine, which may cause it to foam)
  • Hematuria (blood in the urine, which may cause urine to look pink or brown)
  • Reduced filtration rate
  • Hypoproteinemia (low levels of protein in the blood)
  • Edema (swelling in feet, hands, and/or face from fluid retention)

 

How is glomerular disease diagnosed?

Diagnosing a glomerular disease can include a combination of the following:

  • Urinalysis and blood tests, to determine how efficiently your kidneys are filtering wastes
  • Imaging tests (such as an ultrasound or x-ray) to evaluate the shape and size of the kidneys 
  • A kidney biopsy, in which small pieces of kidney tissue are extracted and analyzed for abnormalities 

 

What are the causes of glomerular disease?

Learning the cause of glomerular diseases helps to determine the best treatment. There are a number of known causes that are broken down into different categories, which include:

  • Autoimmune diseases, such as  lupus nephritis, anti-GBM (Goodpasture’s) disease, and IgA nephropathy, in which immune system cells attack healthy cells in the body 
  • Hereditary nephritis, or Alport syndrome, usually indicated by a family history of chronic glomerular disease (may also involve hearing or vision impairment) 
  • Infection-related glomerular diseases, such as acute post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis (PSGN), bacterial endocarditis, and HIV, which can develop quickly following an infection 
  • Sclerotic diseases, which involve the production of scar tissue, resulting in organ damage 
  • Membranous nephropathy, involving the buildup of unusually high levels of immunoglobulin G and complement C3 (substances created by the body’s immune system) in the kidneys 
  • Minimal change disease (MCD), which occurs most often in childhood, and is diagnosed when a patient has symptoms of glomerular disease, but a kidney biopsy detects little or no change to the structure of glomeruli or surrounding tissue 

Depending on the form of glomerular disease, kidney function can deteriorate in a matter of days, weeks, or years. Early diagnosis and proper treatment of your particular type of glomerular disease is key to delaying or preventing progression to kidney failure. 

 

*Glomerular Diseases. (2022, August 29). National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/kidney-disease/glomerular-diseases#how

Source: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

 

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