Low incidence of glomerulosclerosis in normal kidneys

Forty normal kidneys were selected from a series of 146 renal samples obtained at forensic autopsies of American Indians and whites. Glomeruli were counted and the percentage of globally sclerosed, obsolescent glomeruli was calculated for each case. The mean for sclerotic glomeruli was less than 3% in any age group younger than 56 years. This finding is in agreement with the results of similar studies, but substantially lower than the figures quoted in textbooks. Analysis of the combination of our data with studies performed by other authors shows that the 90th percentile of glomerular sclerosis can be calculated for any age by subtracting 10 from half the patient's age. No ethnic- or sex-related differences were seen in any age group.