Glomerular diseases in children. "The Iranian experience"

A total of 411 children, aged from 0.3 to 18 years, suffering from glomerular diseases, were studied by renal biopsy between 1976 and 1985. The clinical presentation included nephrotic syndrome (79% of cases), renal failure (43%), and arterial hypertension (38%). In all, 177 cases presented with primary nephrotic syndrome; all had complicated courses and most were either corticosteroid-dependent or -resistant. Only 26.6% had minimal change disease on renal biopsy; 56.5% had focal-segmental sclerosis; and immunofluorescent deposits were observed in half of the group. Acute poststreptococcal (36 cases), mesangiocapillary (80 cases), and lupus (34 cases) glomerulonephritis occurred frequently; IgA glomerulopathy (10 cases) and haemolytic uraemic syndrome (6 cases) were uncommon. Glomerular crescents were observed in 71 cases. These observations illustrate the types of glomerular diseases seen in Iranian children.