Acute Glomerulonephritis Relapse

Dear Ask The Doctor: Hi. I am a 16 year old girl and this is my story: when I was 12 years old, I went to the doctor for my yearly physical. Generally what would happen was the doctor would ask me to urinate in a cup and I always said that I didn't need to go or I didn't want to do it and they never pressured me to, but for some reason I decided that this time I would do it. The results were not good- I had to much blood and protine in my urine and I would have to go and see a specialist. So I went to a specialist who suggested we do a biopsy to see what was going on and the action to take from there. After the biopsy the doctor found that I had acute glomerulonephritis and he suggested that I go on a medicine called Prednisone and that would reverse the effects of the disease. I went on prednisone for 2 years and one of the side effects was weight gain, so I gained a lot of weight, putting me at close to 200 pounds and barely 5"2 at 14. When I went off the medicine I gradually began to lose weight. But I never did another urinalysis to make sure that I wouldn't have a relapse. THe doctor never called and I never did it. Now, I am 16 and I just did a urinalysis. The results are not good. They want me to do another urinalysis to make sure that they got the right results, but I am scared. What happens if I relapsed? Will I have to go back on the Prednisone or is there another solution that won't make me gain weight again? Is it weird that I have this at 16?

Dear Goldie:

I understand how concerned you are about this condition. Glomerulonephritis refers to a group of conditions that causes inflammation of the very tiny vessels that filtrates the blood in your kidneys. This can be caused by various disorders, such as infections, an inherited genetic disorder, or autoimmune disorders.

Body swelling, headaches, dizziness, blood in your urine and high blood pressure are just some of the symptoms that might be present with this condition. Ruling out the exact cause of your glomerulonephritis is the first step. Once your doctors know the exact condition, treatment can be given. For example if this is caused by an infection, treating you with antibiotics will resolve the situation. I will suggest you to comply with your treatment and follow up visits this time. Following a diet that is low in protein and sodium may be necessary until kidney function recovers.