[Is glomerulopathy due to schistosomiasis mansoni disappearing?]

Hepatosplenic form of S. mansoni infection may be accompanied by a glomerulopathy in 12-15% of cases, manifested in the majority by a nephrotic. This type of renal involvement is becoming a rare occurrence in our University Hospital (Hospital Universitário Prof. Edgard Santos) a typical general hospital in an endemic state for this parasitic disease. To investigate this fact, autopsied cases with patients with hepatosplenic form of schistosomiasis mansoni during two decades in our Hospital-1960-70, (before a therapeutic intervention in endemic areas with oxamniquine) and 1980-1990 (after the intervention) were compared in reference to number of cases and the finding of glomerulonephritis by histological examination. Even though there was a striking decrease in number of patients with advanced forms of this disease (140 as compared to 31 autopsies in these two decades), the prevalence of glomerulonephritis diagnosed was 11.4 (16 cases) in the first and 12.9 (4 cases) in the second. As there was no change in pattern of attendance in this Hospital, the drastic decrease in number of severe forms of this parasitic infection following massive therapy of the endemic population with oxamniquine is the most likely explanation not only for the decrease in number of hepatosplenic cases but, also, and as a consequence, the scarcity of cases of the schistosomal glomerulopathy observed.