Fibrillary Glomerulonephritis

Fibrillary glomerulonephritis is an uncommon cause of glomerular disease. A more rare disorder known as immunotactoid glomerulpathy is a very similar condition. Both disorders probably result from deposits derived from immunoglobulins but in most cases the cause is idiopathic (unknown). The diagnosis is made with a kidney biopsy and by electron microscopy. Fibrillary glomerulonephritis and immunotactoid glomerulopathy can be differentiated from each other by electron microscopy; the fibrils in fibrillary glomerulonephritis are smaller and randomly oriented as opposed to the larger and often organized fibrils of immunotactoid glomerulopathy. The signs and symptoms include blood (hematuria) and protein (proteinuria) in the urine, kidney insufficiency and high blood pressure. Both fibrillary glomerulonephritis and immunotactoid glomerulopathy have been associated with hepatitis C virus infection and with malignancy and autoimmune disease. Because of this, patients should be screened for these conditions. Treatment is generally determined by the severity of the kidney problems.