ROLE OF IMMUNOHISTOLOGICAL FINDINGS IN NEPHROLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS

Renal tissues from fifty patients with various renal diseases were studied by immunofluorescent technique. Findings were correlated with the clinical course and with pathologic changes seen by light microscopy. 1. IgG-depositions were demonstrated only on glomeruli from patients with glomerulonephritis (GLN), but not on glomeruli from patients with pyelonephritis or essential hypertension. In membranous glomerulonephritis the patterns of IgG-depositions were granular along capillary basement membranes whereas in nephrotic syndrome of other etiology gamma-globulin was absent. By immunofluorescence an involvement of the kidney in systemic lupus erythematosus was sometimes dedected earlier glomerular then by conventional histopathology. A negative immunofluorescence indicated a complete healing of acute GLN. In this respect no difference were dedected between acute persistent and chronic GLN with low activity. 2. This method enabled a distinction between nephropathies on an immunological basis and diseases of other pathogenesis. 3. Two patients with subacute GLN and one with nephrotic syndrom showed a typical linear pattern of IgG-depositions as characteristic for basement membrane antibodies, two cases with membranous GLN and one with systemic lupus erythematosus granular depositions typical for immune-complexnephritis. 4. Depositions of complement without detectable IgG were often seen on renal arterioli, especially in patients with hypertension. This observation requires further investigations. © 1969 Springer-Verlag.