UPJ Obstruction

UPJ obstruction is another common congenital abnormality which under some circumstances can lead to significant renal scarring and chronic kidney diseases. About 50% of ultrasounds during pregnancy which detect antenatal hydronephrosis turn out to have UPJ obstruction. UPJ…

3495 0

ANCA-negative vasculitis

Pauci-immune disease–a common cause of glomerulonephritis–refers to the histologic finding that there is an absence of glomerular immune staining (e.g., no immune complex or anti-GBM staining). Usually this is accompanied by positive ANCA titers, but not necessarily. When…

2744 0

Lead Nephropathy

The first report that lead can cause nephrotoxicity was by Lancereaux in 1863, who observed chronic kidney disease in an artist who habitually would hold paintbrushes in his mouth; there are some who believe that the collapse of…

2323 0

Churg-Strauss Syndrome

There is a patient now on the renal consult service with Churg-Strauss Syndrome. This disease falls under the category of “small vessel vasculitis” and most commonly is thought of as a pulmonary disease, as the characteristic triad consists…

5426 0

Acute Phosphate Nephropathy

It has long been known that acute phosphate toxicity–as might be seen in rhabdomyolysis or tumor lysis syndrome–can lead to acute kidney injury as a result of calcium-phosphate deposition in the renal parenchyma and tubules. Interestingly, this problem…

3251 1

History of Dialysis

When discussing the history of dialysis, any renal fellow worth his weight in urine will know that the inventor of the first practical dialysis machine (the “rotating drum” machine shown at left, which consisted of 30-40 meters of…

5048 0

Lithium as a dialyzable toxin

Lithium is one of the classic dialyzable toxins, as it is very small (atomic # of 3) and elevated Li levels (>2.5 meq/L) may result in tremor, ataxia, vomiting, seizures, or even coma. However it is somewhat unique…

2359 0
Load more