Arab Journal of Nephrology and Transplantation

Youth, which is forgiven everything, forgives itself nothing: age, which forgives itself everything, is forgiven nothing. George Bernard Shaw The proportion of older people in the general population is steadily increasing worldwide, with the most rapid growth in low-and middle-income countries [1]. This demographic change is to be celebrated, because it is the consequence of socioeconomic development and better life expectancy. However, population aging also has important implications for society - in diverse areas including health systems, labor markets, public policy, social programs, and family dynamics [2]...

INTRODUCTION: Hypertension is a non-communicable disease of increasing importance in developing countries. Due to its silent nature and serious complications, active screening is essential in case detection. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of undiagnosed hypertension and to find out whether there are ethnic variations in prevalence between two Sudanese ethnicities. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional community-based study in which 100 subjects from Nuba tribe and 70 Coptics not previously known to have hypertension volunteered to participate...

INTRODUCTION: Developing countries confront double jeopardy of prevalent infectious disease and increasing Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) with imminent projected epidemic proportions. Nigeria has witnessed tremendous socio-economic changes and rural to urban migration culminating in emergence of NCD. The impact of these diseases on the lives of people is enormous when measured in terms of outcomes. We initiated a screening program among inhabitants of Sokoto metropolis in an attempt to unravel the prevalence and pattern of NCD...

INTRODUCTION: There are numerous causes for intracranial calcification in children. We describe an unusual cause of intracranial calcification in a child, namely, nephrogenic diabetes insipidus (NDI). CASE REPORT: A 12-year-old boy presented with seizures and developmental delay. MRI of the brain revealed intracranial calcification. Evaluation showed findings suggestive of NDI. The lack of evidence of any other metabolic defect suggests that these calcifications were secondary to NDI...

INTRODUCTION: Membranous nephropathy (MN) in the context of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), is often an iatrogenic complication due to the nephrotoxic effects of antirheumatic drugs. Rare cases of non-iatrogenic association between these two diseases were reported in the literature. CASE REPORT: A 30-year-old female patient presented in September 2005 with nephrotic syndrome. Renal biopsy showed features consistent with MN. Search for etiology was negative, particularly lupus serology which remained negative throughout the course of her illness...

INTRODUCTION: Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) associated vasculitis involving the kidney usually comprises pauci-immune, necrotizing glomerulonephritis with crescents. Mononuclear tubulo-interstitial infiltrates are common in ANCA associated vasculitis, but these have usually been described in conjunction with glomerulitis. Acute tubulo-interstitial nephritis (ATIN) is a common cause of acute kidney injury that is most frequently induced by drugs or infections. Idiopathic ATIN has rarely been reported in association with the presence of a positive ANCA...

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to assess the therapeutic efficacy of traditional Chinese acupuncture in the treatment of persistent primary nocturnal enuresis (PNE). METHODS: Fifty children and adolescents suffering from persistent PNE were recruited from the Pediatrics and Urology Outpatient Clinic of Zagazig University Hospital during the year 2010. They included 31 boys and 19 girls, with a mean age of 116 ± years (range 9-17 years). The children and their parents underwent thorough counseling followed by two courses of treatment, each course administered over 10 consecutive days...

INTRODUCTION: Affective disorders, particularly depression, are the commonest and probably the most important psychopathological complication of end stage renal disease (ESRD). Depression has the potential to alter adversely the medical outcome of ESRD patients and the psychological stress can affect patient's adherence to medication regimen. In Iraq as well as many other Arab countries, the true prevalence of depression among ESRD patients is unknown. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of depression among a cohort of Iraqi hemodialysis (HD) patients and relate it to their socio-demographic characteristics...

INTRODUCTION: Immunofluorescence (IF) microscopy is an important tool for the diagnosis of glomerular diseases. In this study, we focused on using IF technique together with light microscopy (LM) and clinical features in the diagnosis of different types of glomerulonephritis (GN). We aimed to evaluate the spectrum of glomerular diseases in our center and compare it with other centers in Iraq as well as in other countries. METHODS: We studied a total of 58 kidney biopsies taken between June 2010 and June 2012...

INTRODUCTION: Dense Deposit Disease (DDD) is a devastating renal disease that leads to renal failure within 10 years of diagnosis in about half of affected patients. In this study, we evaluated the relative prevalence and pathological features of DDD diagnosed at our center over a 29 years period. METHODS: We reviewed the clinical and pathological features of all cases of DDD diagnosed at the Electron Microscopy Unit of Ain Shams University (ASUSH) between January 1983 and December 2011...

INTRODUCTION: It is now evident that even minimal reductions in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) are associated with a dramatic increase in mortality. The term acute kidney injury (AKI) describes an acute fall of estimated GFR (eGFR) and allows patient stratification based on AKI severity. REVIEW: The Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss and End-stage kidney disease (RIFLE) system defines AKI by a change in serum creatinine (SCr) level or eGFR from a baseline value, and urine output per kilogram of body weight over a specified time period...

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is increasingly prevalent in developing and developed countries and is associated with severe morbidity and mortality. Most etiologies of AKI can be prevented by interventions at the individual, community, regional and in-hospital levels. Effective measures must include community-wide efforts to increase an awareness of the devastating effects of AKI and provide guidance on preventive strategies, as well as early recognition and management. Efforts should be focused on minimizing causes of AKI, increasing awareness of the importance of serial measurements of serum creatinine in high risk patients, and documenting urine volume in acutely ill people to achieve early diagnosis; there is as yet no definitive role for alternative biomarkers...

INTRODUCTION: In hemodialysis (HD) wards, nurses play a pivotal role in HD access care. Unfortunately, guideline recommendations for routine preventive care are not always followed. This study was designed to evaluate nurses' awareness and practice of HD access care in Khartoum state, Sudan. METHODS: The study included 50 randomly selected HD nurses. Nurses' knowledge was evaluated using a participant-filled questionnaire and their practice was evaluated by direct monitoring...

INTRODUCTION: Hemodialysis (HD) patients are predisposed to infective endocarditis (IE) mainly due to repeated manipulation of the vascular access. However, catheter seeding and IE may also result from a distant infection site. CASE SERIES: A diabetic patient who was maintained on regular HD through a permanent catheter in the right internal jugular vein presented with septicemia of urinary origin due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa. He was treated with injectable antibiotics for 15 days...

INTRODUCTION: Due to dearth of data, chronic kidney disease (CKD) outcome in African children has been dismal owing to poor understanding of its etiology, manifestations and management. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the records of 154 CKD children and adolescents who were managed at Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex between 2000 and 2009 to evaluate the epidemiology and clinicopathologic outcome of pediatric CKD in Nigeria. RESULTS: Overall mean incidence was 11 (6-20) per million children population (pmcp)/year while prevalence averaged 48 (8-101) pmcp...

INTRODUCTION: Hemodialysis (HD) is a complex procedure with many specifications and requires adherence to a set of particular clinical practice guidelines. These guidelines had already been established by globally acclaimed renal authorities and their implementation was shown to correlate with patients' morbidity and mortality. This study was conducted to evaluate the adherence of healthcare professionals to the evidence-based clinical practice patterns in Khartoum State HD units. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Khartoum State HD units during the period from September 2010 to January of 2011...

INTRODUCTION: Malnutrition is common in maintenance hemodialysis (HD) and is associated with increased mortality and morbidity in affected patients. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of malnutrition and correlate the methods of nutritional assessment. METHODS: We evaluated the nutritional status of 40 prevalent HD patients by subjective global assessment (SGA) score, anthropometrics [body mass index (BMI), arm circumference (AC), triceps skin-fold thicknesses (TSF), arm muscle circumference (AMC)], biochemical tests [normalized protein equivalent to total nitrogen appearance (nPNA), and pre-dialysis serum albumin and serum prealbumin levels] and bio-electrical impedance (BEI) analysis to estimate body composition [lean tissue index (LTI) and fat tissue index (FTI)]...

INTRODUCTION: In view of the conflicting evidence of helper T cell type 1 (Th1) or type 2 (Th2) pattern of cytokine synthesis in steroid sensitive nephrotic syndrome (SSNS), this study aimed to assess type-1/type-2 cytokines level in different stages of SSNS and to evaluate the role of IL-18. METHODS: We prospectively studied thirty children with SSNS, aged 2-12 years. The children were evaluated in the active stage before treatment initiation and re-evaluated again during remission while still on steroid treatment...

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