Glomerulonephritis With Positive Anti-Glomerular Basement Membrane Antibodies Following Alemtuzumab Treatment

E White1, A Watson1, J Holian1

  • 1St. Vincent's University Hospital Group, Dublin 4.

Irish Medical Journal
|August 21, 2020
PubMed

Presentation A 28 year old female presented to the emergency department with a one week history of headache, vomiting and diaphoresis. Creatinine on admission was 492 and urinalysis revealed blood and protein. This was 5 months after a second infusion of Alemtuzumab, for treatment of highly active relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis. Diagnosis Anti-glomerular basement membrane disease was diagnosed after a vasculitic screen was sent for suspected glomerulonephritis. Treatment Unfortunately despite early diagnosis and immunosuppressive treatment, the patient progressed to end stage kidney failure. Conclusion It is important to maintain a high index of suspicion and test for anti-GBM disease in patients receiving alemtuzumab who develop acute renal failure.

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