Glomerular Disease

What is glomerular disease?  — Glomerular disease is a condition that affects the kidneys. The kidneys are organs in the urinary tract that make urine. Each kidney has 2 parts:

• A part that filters the blood and removes waste and excess salt and water
• A part that collects urine

In glomerular disease, the part of the kidney that filters the blood doesn’t work normally. As a result, substances that shouldn’t be in the urine, such as blood and protein, can get into the urine.

There are different types of glomerular disease. Sometimes glomerular disease causes serious problems. It can cause acute kidney failure, in which the kidneys suddenly stop working. It can also cause chronic kidney disease, in which the kidneys slowly stop working.

What are the symptoms of glomerular disease?  — The symptoms depend on the type of glomerular disease you have and what’s causing it. Some people with glomerular disease have no symptoms. They find out they have it when their doctor does a urine test for another reason.When glomerular disease causes symptoms, they can include:

• Bloody urine or urine that is red, pink, or brown
• Foamy-looking urine
• Swelling of the hands, face, feet, or belly
• Feeling tired
• Urinating less than usual

Is there a test for glomerular disease?

A simple urine tests will show proteins or blood or both in urine, which alerts your doctor to look for presence of any glomerular disease. Your doctor or nurse will then do tests to find out presence, extent and type of glomerular disease. These tests can include:

• Blood tests to check for medical conditions that can cause glomerular disease
• Ultrasound for kidneys
• A kidney biopsy – During a biopsy, the doctor will put a thin needle into your back and into your kidney. He or she will remove a tiny sample of tissue from the kidney. Then another doctor will look at the sample under a microscope.

How is glomerular disease treated?  — Treatment depends on your symptoms, what’s causing your glomerular disease, and how quickly it happened.

People with mild glomerular disease might not need treatment. But their doctor will do blood and urine tests over time to follow their condition.

Some types of glomerular disease go away on their own. When glomerular diseases need to be treated, treatment can include Steroids or alternatively some other special kind of medicines. You need to visit your kidney specialist regularly with important tests.