JournalTOCs

Case Reports in Nephrology and Dialysis
Journal Prestige (SJR): 0.142

Number of Followers: 8

This is an Open Access Journal

Open Access journal
ISSN (Online) 2296-9705
Published by Karger

[122 journals]

Acute Kidney Injury following Exposure to Formaldehyde-Free
Hair-Straightening Products
- Abstract: Formaldehyde-free hair-straightening products are hair-smoothening solutions widely used by professional beauty salons. Formaldehyde-free hair straighteners do not technically contain formaldehyde; however, they contain other chemicals such as glyoxyloyl carbocysteine which releases formaldehyde upon contact with heat. Moreover, its by-product glyoxylate may convert to oxalate; both compounds have potential nephrotoxic effect. Here, we report a case of a 41-year-old woman who presented to the emergency room with weakness, nausea, vomiting, and stage 3 acute kidney injury (AKI) according to Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) acute kidney injury staging shortly after exposure to formaldehyde-free hair-straightening product; other causes of AKI were excluded such as preceding acute illness, drug history, or other nephrotoxic agent exposure. On physical examination, the patient was pale, and her vital signs were normal. The urine microscopy and serologic workup were not indicative. Kidney core biopsy revealed interstitial edema, acute interstitial nephritis, and oxalate crystal nephropathy. Kidney function completely recovered after a short course of steroid therapy. In this case, AKI was a complication caused by exposure to hair-straightening products branded as formaldehyde free but actually containing other chemical products which release formaldehyde and other toxic chemicals when heated during the straightening procedure and may cause systemic toxicity, particularly kidney injury. Different cosmetic products are widely in use, but not all are under tight regulation, and therefore, it is important to raise the awareness among both medical teams and consumers of possible adverse health effects of different cosmetic products.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:112–116
  PubDate: Mon, 11 Jul 2022 06:43:10 +020
Propylthiouracil-Induced Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibodies-Associated
Vasculitis with Renal and Lung Involvement
- Abstract: Propylthiouracil (PTU)-induced antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) is a rare and heterogeneous disease. Moreover, optimal treatment is still lacking. We described the case of a 44-year-old lady with underlying Graves’ disease who had cough, blood-streaked sputum, and impaired renal function. A strongly positive anti-myeloperoxidase antibody (#x3e;200 U/mL) along with pauci-immune glomerulonephritis and pulmonary hemorrhage resulted in the diagnosis of PTU-induced AAV, given that the patient had been on PTU for 3 years. PTU withdrawal, therapeutic plasma exchanges, and oral cyclophosphamide provided favorable clinical and biochemical outcomes. She remained well on azathioprine 50 mg daily as maintenance therapy and clinically euthyroid with carbimazole 2.5 mg daily. The effective treatment for drug-induced ANCA vasculitis remains controversial, but rapid withdrawal of the offending medication should be the mainstay of treatment. In severe drug-induced ANCA vasculitis with pulmonary hemorrhage and/or life-threatening organ involvement such as kidney failure requiring dialysis, therapeutic plasma exchange with immunosuppressants is often required. In this case, we have shown that patient achieved remission after therapeutic plasma exchange with cyclophosphamide in the acute stage of treatment and remained symptom-free with azathioprine in the maintenance phase of treatment for 24 months.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:105–111
  PubDate: Fri, 17 Jun 2022 12:56:41 +020
Membranous Nephropathy-Like Apolipoprotein E Deposition Disease with
Apolipoprotein E Toyonaka and Homozygous Apolipoprotein E2/2 without
Dyslipidemia, with Characteristic Electron-Dense Deposits
- Abstract: Recently, several cases of novel apolipoprotein E (apoE)-related glomerular disease known as membranous nephropathy (MN)-like apoE deposition disease with apoE Toyonaka (Ser197Cys) and homozygous apoE2/2 have been reported. However, the clinical and pathological characteristics are uncertain due to the small number of reports. Here, we report an additional case with various clinical and pathological characteristics. A 28-year-old Japanese man with mild proteinuria and hematuria underwent a kidney biopsy. Examination under a light microscope revealed mesangial proliferation, mesangial matrix expansion, and segmental spike lesion. An immunofluorescence study showed no immunoglobulin or complement depositions. In the electron microscopic (EM) examination, massive deposits with various electron densities in the subepithelial, subendothelial, and paramesangial areas were more prominent than those reported in previous cases, which resembled microbubbles or microcysts on higher magnification. The glomerular basement membrane (GBM) structure was partly degenerated by these deposits. Serum triglyceride and cholesterol levels were within the normal range. However, the serum apoE concentration was significantly high, and glomerular apoE accumulation was detected in immunohistochemistry. The DNA sequence revealed apoE Toyonaka and homozygous apoE2/2 similar to that of the previous cases with MN-like apoE deposition disease. MN-like apoE deposition disease can manifest as only mild hematuria and proteinuria without dyslipidemia. Various characteristic deposits associated with GBM degeneration can be observed in the EM study.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:96–104
  PubDate: Fri, 10 Jun 2022 09:30:08 +020
Spontaneous Twin Pregnancy: A Challenging and Exceptional Scenario in a
Patient on Maintenance Hemodialysis in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Abstract: Chronic hemodialysis is associated with reduced fertility. Hence, pregnancy remains rare, challenging, and deleterious when unplanned, especially in low-resource countries. Contraception and births are very important in these settings. Though the main modes of contraception have been proposed in the chronic kidney disease (CKD) population, contraception still remains challenging in patients on maintenance hemodialysis. Most doctors, however, overlook contraception because of the low fertility, high rate of amenorrhea, and low libido. Furthermore, patients are less receptive to contraceptive counseling either because of a high desire to give birth or due to amenorrhea and low libido. Management of unplanned pregnancies is therefore very challenging and a multidisciplinary approach is the rule; however, it does not guarantee a good prognosis for both the mother and child. Very few cases of multiple pregnancies without induction of ovulation have been reported in patients with severe renal failure, especially those on maintenance dialysis. A 32-year-old multiparous woman with end-stage kidney failure (ESKF) and a residual diuresis of 700 mL per day who had been on inadequate maintenance hemodialysis for 36 months, presented with abdominal distension, which was confirmed on abdominal ultrasound to be a twin pregnancy at 22 weeks of gestation. Thereafter, we intensified hemodialysis (3 sessions/week), managed hypertension and anemia. The obstetrical course was uneventful until the 25th week of gestation when she developed grade 3 (WHO) hypertension and peripheral fluid overload. At the 29th week, she had a spontaneous vaginal preterm delivery of 2 babies weighing 1,350 g and 1,000 g, with an Apgar score of 8 and 7, respectively. Babies, however, died on day 1 and day 5 postpartum, respectively, from respiratory distress and early neonatal infection. The evolution of the mother was uneventful as she continued with her hemodialysis sessions. Twin pregnancies are a rare and very high-risk condition in end-stage renal disease and require multidisciplinary management.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:90–95
  PubDate: Tue, 07 Jun 2022 06:17:59 +020
Urothelial Carcinoma in an Allograft kidney
- Abstract: Patients who have been kidney transplanted have an increased risk of developing cancer. This case report presents a rarely described case in which a patient, who had received a kidney transplant from a deceased donor, was diagnosed with disseminated urothelial carcinoma originating from the allograft. After the removal of the allograft and the immunosuppressive treatment, there was regression in the cancer. Unfortunately, it was not a complete regression of the urothelial cancer and the patient died. This case indicates that there is a risk of getting cancer from the transplanted kidney from a deceased donor, but also that the immunosuppressive treatment can contribute to the development of this cancer.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:85–89
  PubDate: Tue, 31 May 2022 13:44:45 +020
Lautropia mirabilis: An Exceedingly Rare Cause of Peritoneal
Dialysis-Associated Peritonitis
- Abstract: Lautropia mirabilis is a gram-negative coccoid bacterium isolated from oral and upper respiratory sites with unclear pathogenic potential. We present an exceedingly rare case of peritoneal dialysis-associated peritonitis due to L. mirabilis in a patient with a recent history of periodontal infection, successfully treated with intraperitoneal antibiotics. We propose that clinicians consider this organism as a potential cause of illness.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:81–84
  PubDate: Mon, 02 May 2022 12:45:38 +020
Interest of a Kidney Biopsy to Rule out ANCA-Associated Renal Vasculitis
in Glomerulonephritis Patients with a Positive ANCA
- Abstract: Kidney biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosing glomerular kidney disease. Some authors debate the necessity of systematically performing kidney biopsies in ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) to confirm the diagnosis and assess the severity of renal damage. Nevertheless, kidney involvement is considered an organ-threatening disease requiring an aggressive immunosuppressive regimen. We present a series of 4 cases with a high clinical suspicion of ANCA-associated crescentic glomerulonephritis based on rising serum creatinine, presence of proteinuria and/or hematuria, and presence of ANCA with specificity against PR-3 or MPO. The main diagnosis, however, was arterionephrosclerosis without renal AAV. Certain comorbidities, such as diabetes and/or high blood pressure, can quickly mimic progressive glomerulonephritis. In addition, some patients with AAV do not have high creatinine, proteinuria, or hematuria levels. ANCA alone is not specific to AAV and has a poor positive predictive value. The main concern is to prevent the unnecessary, inappropriate complications of heavy immunosuppression, i.e., serious infections or risk of future malignancies. Kidney pathological confirmation is important in patients with no compatible extra-renal manifestations of AAV or any other possible renal diagnosis such as may be found in polyvascular disease or diabetic patients.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:73–80
  PubDate: Thu, 28 Apr 2022 08:05:26 +020
Polyclonal Immunotactoid Glomerulopathy Associated with Monoclonal
Gammopathy of IgM Type and Underlying Plasmacellular Disease: Successful
Treatment with Rituximab Alone
- Abstract: Immunotactoid glomerulopathy (ITG) occurs infrequently and is characterized by organized IgG containing deposits. It most usually manifests as a concomitant disease of a broad spectrum of oncologic entities. We here present an exceptional case of ITG without glomerular light chain restriction secondary to a IgM kappa type monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance. Due to nephrotic syndrome and deterioration of kidney function a rituximab monotherapy was initiated without targeting the plasmacellular augmentation, which was confirmed as the underlying process. The treatment led to a long-term improvement of proteinuria and stabilization of glomerular filtration rate. Its therapeutic effect has to be attributed to immunomodulatory capacities and targeting of podocytes rather than to be interpreted as directed against a bone marrow or glomerular clone. We conclude that rituximab therapy may be a valuable part of the therapeutic options in ITG irrespective of the underlying oncologic entity.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:63–72
  PubDate: Mon, 25 Apr 2022 08:05:24 +020
Hemodialysis-Related Vision Loss from Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy
- Abstract: Vision loss from nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) is a rare complication of hemodialysis. Here, we present a case in a young woman and discuss the pathophysiology and implications for the nephrologist. A 24-year-old woman with end-stage renal disease developed unilateral, painless vision loss following treatment with hemodialysis. Fundoscopy revealed severe left inferior chalky-white opticdisc edema, a presentation consistent with NAION. Her intradialytic blood pressure was reviewed and found to be significantly lower than her baseline, and a multidisciplinary meeting took place between her ophthalmologist and nephrologist to modify her dialysis sessions to minimize the chance of progression or involvement of her fellow eye. At the 2-month follow-up, the opticdisc edema resolved, and her visual function remained stable. Overall, NAION is a rare complication of hemodialysis and may be a result of intradialytic hypotension, platelet and endothelial dysfunction, anemia, and accumulations of toxins such as urea. As there are no established treatments for NAION, management should focus on optimizing modifiable risk factors to prevent further vision loss in the other eye. These factors include increasing the number of dialysis sessions and duration of sessions, reducing the temperature of the dialysate, discouraging eating, and increasing the dialysate’s calcium concentration. Prompt recognition of NAION and multidisciplinary teamwork can minimize the risk of NAION progression and involvement of the contralateral eye.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:57–62
  PubDate: Tue, 29 Mar 2022 12:13:33 +020
Coexistence of Light- and Heavy-Chain Deposition Disease and Immunotactoid
Glomerulopathy in a Patient with Multiple Myeloma: A Case Report
- Abstract: Multiple myeloma is a malignant neoplasm leading to a variety of renal diseases. Although most patients have only one pattern of renal pathology, two or more patterns can exist in some patients. Here, we report a 61-year-old man with multiple myeloma developed proteinuria, hematuria, hypertension, and renal insufficiency. A combined presentation of light- and heavy-chain deposition disease and immunotactoid glomerulopathy was proved by kidney biopsy. Treatment of multiple myeloma resulted in a complete resolution of the renal manifestations. This case illustrates the complexity of paraprotein associated renal lesions and emphasizes that further studies examining the physiologic properties and pathologic effects of monoclonal immunoglobulin are needed.
  Case Rep Nephrol Dial 2022;12:50–56
  PubDate: Mon, 21 Mar 2022 07:51:31 +010