title: Plasma exchange treatment improves prognosis of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated crescentic glomerulonephritis: a case-control study in 26 patients from a single center.
abstract: Twenty-six patients with Antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated crescentic glomerulonephritis (GN) were divided into two groups according to the acute phase treatment: drug therapy consisting of steroids and oral cyclophosphamide plus a plasma exchange (PE) course (group A, 13 patients) or drug therapy alone (group B, 13 patients). Group A patients had a more severe clinical picture and higher serum creatinine than group B (12.7 +/- 6.9 vs. 8.5 +/- 5.3 mg%); nine patients from group A (69%) and five from group B (38%) required dialysis. At follow up (mean 35 months) all patients treated with PE were alive: four of them were in end-stage renal disease. Among group B patients, three (23%) died in the acute phase; 6 (46%) needed renal replacement therapy at follow up. Of the dialysis-dependent patients, five out of nine from group A were free of dialysis, while in group B two out of five patients had died, two had entered a regular dialysis treatment and one had received a cadaver graft. These data suggest that PE may significantly improve the prognosis of patients with ANCA-associated crescentic GN even if they are not dialysis-dependent at the time of diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Nephrology, Dialysis and Renal Transplantation Unit, St. Orsola University Hospital, Bologna, Italy. frasca@orsola-malpighi.med.unibo.it
authors.forename: Giovanni M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Frascà
authors.forename: Maria Letizia
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Soverini
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Falaschini
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tampieri
authors.forename: Alba
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vangelista
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Stefoni
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D019268:Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015432:Glomerulonephritis, Membranoproliferative / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D014890:Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007677:Kidney Function Tests; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010951:Plasma Exchange / Q000379:methods*; D011336:Probability; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D019268:Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic