With a hour collection of urine, the lab measures only the amount of albumin present. The single urine sample is easier to collect than the hour sample and is usually sufficient to confirm diagnosis, though the hour collection may be used in some cases.
Nephrotic Syndrome: Background, Pathophysiology, Etiology
Once nephrotic syndrome is diagnosed, blood tests are usually needed to check for systemic diseases that may be causing the nephrotic syndrome and to find out how well the kidneys are working overall. Though blood tests can point toward systemic diseases, a kidney biopsy is usually needed to diagnose the specific underlying disease causing the nephrotic syndrome and to determine the best treatment. A kidney biopsy is a procedure that involves taking a piece of kidney tissue for examination with a microscope. Kidney biopsies are performed by a health care provider in a hospital with light sedation and local anesthetic.
Treating nephrotic syndrome includes addressing the underlying cause as well as taking steps to reduce high blood pressure, edema, high cholesterol, and the risks of infection. Treatment usually includes medications and changes in diet. Medications that lower blood pressure can also significantly slow the progression of kidney disease causing nephrotic syndrome. Two types of blood pressure lowering medications, angiotensin-converting enzyme ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers ARBs , have proven effective in slowing the progression of kidney disease by reducing the pressure inside the glomeruli and thereby reducing albuminuria.
What is nephrotic syndrome?
Many people require two or more medications to control their blood pressure. In addition to an ACE inhibitor or an ARB, a diuretic—a medication that aids the kidneys in removing fluid from the blood—can also be useful in helping to reduce blood pressure as well as edema.
- Nephrotic syndrome - Diagnosis and treatment - Mayo Clinic.
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Beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, and other blood pressure medications may also be needed. People with nephrotic syndrome should receive the pneumococcal vaccine, which helps protect against a bacterium that commonly causes infection, and yearly flu shots. Blood thinning medications are usually only given to people with nephrotic syndrome who develop a blood clot; these medications are not used as a preventive measure. Nephrotic syndrome may go away once the underlying cause has been treated. More information about treating the underlying causes of nephrotic syndrome is provided in the NIDDK health topic, Glomerular Diseases.
Eating, diet, and nutrition have not been shown to play a role in causing or preventing nephrotic syndrome in adults. For people who have developed nephrotic syndrome, limiting intake of dietary sodium, often from salt, and fluid may be recommended to help reduce edema. A diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol may also be recommended to help control hyperlipidemia.
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Nephrotic syndrome includes the following: Albuminuria —large amounts of protein in the urine hyperlipidemia—higher than normal fat and cholesterol levels in the blood edema, or swelling, usually in the legs, feet, or ankles and less often in the hands or face hypoalbuminia—low levels of albumin in the blood Albumin is a protein that acts like a sponge, drawing extra fluid from the body into the bloodstream where it remains until removed by the kidneys. What causes nephrotic syndrome?
What are the symptoms of nephrotic syndrome?
In addition to albuminuria, hyperlipidemia, edema, and hypoalbumina, people with nephrotic syndrome may experience weight gain fatigue foamy urine loss of appetite What are the complications of nephrotic syndrome? Urine samples are taken to diagnose people suspected of having nephrotic syndrome. How is nephrotic syndrome treated? Statin medications may be given to lower cholesterol.
Eating, Diet, and Nutrition Eating, diet, and nutrition have not been shown to play a role in causing or preventing nephrotic syndrome in adults. What are clinical trials, and are they right for you?
Certain things can make people more likely to get nephrotic syndrome, including:. You may not know that you have nephrotic syndrome until you have routine blood and urine tests at a health care appointment. The results of your tests can show that you have too much protein in your urine and not enough protein in your blood.
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They can also show that your levels of cholesterol and triglycerides are too high. Other signs of nephrotic syndrome can include:.
If you have any of these symptoms, or if you have blood tests that show your cholesterol and triglyceride levels are too high, talk to your health care provider doctor, nurse practitioner or physician assistant about checking your kidney health. If you have nephrotic syndrome, your health care provider might want you to have more tests to find out what is causing the problem. Nephrotic syndrome can be caused by diseases that damage the kidneys.
Some of these diseases affect only the kidneys, and these are called primary causes of nephrotic syndrome. Other diseases affect the whole body, including the kidneys, and these are called secondary causes of nephrotic syndrome. Most people who have nephrotic syndrome have secondary causes.
Nephrotic Syndrome
The most common primary cause of nephrotic syndrome in adults is a disease called focal segmental glomerulosclerosis FSGS. The most common secondary cause of nephrotic syndrome in adults is diabetes. The most common primary cause of nephrotic syndrome in children is minimal change disease. Minimal change disease causes kidney damage that can only be seen using a very powerful microscope. The most common secondary cause of nephrotic syndrome in children is diabetes.
What Is Nephrotic Syndrome?
Learn more about focal segmental glomerulosclerosis FSGS here. Learn more about minimal change disease here. Nephrotic syndrome makes your body lose protein through your urine. Proteins do many jobs in your body. Other complications that can be caused by nephrotic syndrome include:.
There is no cure for nephrotic syndrome, but there are treatments that can help you manage symptoms and prevent more kidney damage. If your kidneys stop working, you will need dialysis or a kidney transplant to live. Your health care provider might tell you to take certain medicines to treat the symptoms of nephrotic syndrome.
Medicines to control blood pressure and cholesterol can help reduce your chances of having heart disease.