The year 1995-1996 in review: genetically re-engineering clinical nephrology

The discipline of medical genetics is rapidly transforming the face of nephrology. A number of important advances have been made during the past year in the identification of the molecular basis of renal diseases. This article will summarize how these new findings have expanded our understanding of whether diseases are homogeneous or heterogeneous entities (Bartter's syndrome versus Gitelman's syndrome), the medical basis of certain diseases of unclear etiology (enuresis), and the nature of risk factors for disease occurrence or progression (IgA nephropathy, chronic renal failure, and hemolytic uremic syndrome). It is anticipated that these exciting discoveries will become routine in the near future as medical genetics is fully incorporated into the practice of clinical nephrology.