[The course and prognosis of mesangioproliferative glomerulonephritis]

A retrospective analysis of a clinical course of mesangioproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN) in patients with glomerular deposition of IgA (IgA nephropathy--IgA-N), with glomerular deposition of other Ig to determine prognostic factors of MpGN progression including IgA-N and to examine the patients' sensitivity to immunodepressive therapy.

2000 patients with primary MPGN followed up from 1980 to 1999 from the disease onset to development of chronic renal failure (creatinine > 2.5 mg%). Factors affecting kidney survival were studied using the Cox regression model, factors predicting sensitivity to immunodepressive therapy--using multiple logistic regression.

IgA-N differed by the course and prognosis from other forms of MPGN. In IgA-N urinary syndrome and macrohematuria were encountered more frequently, in other forms of MPGN more frequent was nephrotic syndrome. Prognosis of patients with IgA-N was worse than in MPGN patients without IgA deposition: 10-year "renal survival" (creatinine < 2.5 mg%) was 64 and 97% (p < 0.05), respectively. Prognosis-deteriorating factors for MPGN patients were the following: male sex, nephritis onset in 40-year-olds and older subjects, acute nephritic syndrome (creatinine > 1.5 mg%), high proteinuria, hematuria (> 50 in sight), the presence of synechia and TIC in renal biopsy, location of immune deposits both in the mesangium and basal glomerular membranes. The responders to the immunodepressive therapy had 10-year renal survival 100%. Positive results of immunodepressive therapy were observed significantly more frequently in patients with normal level of creatinine, moderate hematuria, absence of synechias and TIC in renal biopsy, given large total course dose of corticosteroids and cytostatics. Efficiency of oral cyclophosphamide and its intravenous pulse-therapy did not differ significantly. In pulse therapy an average cumulative dose was lower 6 times, side effects occurred 3 times less frequently.

The importance of morphological information for prognosis and predicting sensitivity of MPGN patients to immunosuppressive therapy necessitates renal biopsy before therapy. Intravenous pulse therapy with cyclophosphamide is preferable as an active treatment in patients with sclerosis in renal biopsy.