Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 26, 2025

Ocular Therapeutic Delivery and Advanced Tissue Retrieval in Adult Rats
Published on: May 23, 2025
Comparison of two protocols for steroid pulse therapy in patients with IgA nephropathy: a retrospective observational
Satoshi Yamatani1, Keiji Kono1, Hideki Fujii2
1Division of Nephrology and Kidney Center, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, 7-5-2, Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, 650-0017, Japan.
Background:
Steroid pulse (SP) therapy is one of the immunosuppressive therapies for immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN). Although there are various protocols of SP therapy in IgAN, the intermittent SP (ISP) and consecutive SP (CSP) protocols are prevalently performed in clinical settings. However, there is a lack of evidence of comparisons of the effects on IgAN between these two protocols.
Methods:
A total of 189 patients with IgAN who had received SP therapy were included in this study. They were divided into two groups according to the SP protocols into the intermittent SP (ISP) or consecutive SP (CSP) group as follows: ISP; three-times SP therapy in alternate months, CSP; three-times SP therapy in three consecutive weeks. Kidney function, remission of urinary findings, and side effects of SP therapy were compared between the two groups. The observational period was 12 months after the initiation of SP therapy.
Results:
There was no significant difference in kidney function between the two groups during the observational period. The remission rate of proteinuria and hematuria at 12 months also did not significantly differ between the two groups. Furthermore, even after the adjustment of clinical characteristics using propensity score matching, the remission rate of proteinuria and hematuria at 12 months was similar between the two groups. At 2 months, the remission rate of proteinuria was significantly higher in the CSP group than in the ISP group. There were no critical side effects in both groups.
Conclusion:
The effects of SP therapy on IgAN were similar between the ISP and CSP group at 12 months although CSP therapy could remit proteinuria faster than ISP therapy.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Nephrotic Syndrome II : Assessment and Medical Management
Renal Drug Clearance: Comparison Between Renal Excretion Methods
Renal clearance is often associated with the renal glomerular filtration rate (GFR), which represents the rate at which plasma is filtered through the glomeruli in the kidney. When drug reabsorption is minimal and there is no active secretion, renal clearance is closely related to the...
Acute Kidney Injury IV: Diagnostic Studies and Prevention
Nephrotic Syndrome I : Introduction
Treatment for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: Prostacyclin Receptor Agonists
These agonists bind to the IPR receptor situated on the plasma membrane of the pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. This binding triggers a cascade of reactions known as the GS-AC-cAMP-PKA pathway. This pathway results in the relaxation of smooth muscle...
Drugs for Treatment of Crohn's Disease in IBD Using Glucocorticoids

