Patterns of renal disease in South Korea: a 20-year review of a single-center renal biopsy database.

BACKGROUND: Several registries and centers have reported the results of renal biopsies from different parts of the world. As there are few data regarding the epidemiology of glomerulonephritis (GN) in South Korea, we conducted this study on renal biopsy findings during the last 20 years from a single center. METHODS: Data for 818 patients who underwent renal biopsy at our center between 1992 and 2011 were collected retrospectively. All kidney specimens were examined with light microscopy (LM) and immunofluorescent microscopy (IF). RESULTS: There were 818 cases of native kidney biopsies. In cases of primary GN, the most frequent type of renal pathology in adults (18-59 years) was mesangial proliferative GN (MsPGN, 34.5%) followed by IgA nephropathy (IgAN, 33.3%) and membranous GN (MGN, 8.8%). Indications in adults (18-59 years) were asymptomatic urinary abnormalities (75.3%) followed by nephrotic syndrome (19.8%) and acute kidney injury (AKI, 3.4%). CONCLUSIONS: Among 818 renal biopsy specimens, MsPGN and IgAN were the most frequent biopsy-proven renal diseases. MGN was the third most common cause of primary GN and lupus nephritis (LN) was the most common secondary glomerular disease. Our data contribute to the epidemiology of renal disease in South Korea.

Outcomes of acute kidney injury patients with and without cancer.

Incidence of AKI in hospitalized patients with cancer is increasing, but there have been few studies on AKI in patients with cancer. We conducted a retrospective cohort study in a South Korean tertiary care hospital. A total of 2211 consecutive patients (without cancer 61.5%; with cancer 38.5%) were included over a 140-month period. Predictors of all-cause death were examined using the Kaplan-Meier method and the Cox proportional hazards model. The main contributing factors of AKI were sepsis (31.1%) and ischemia (52.7%). AKI was multifactorial in 78% of patients with cancer and in 71% of patients without cancer. Hospital mortality rates were higher in patients with cancer (42.8%) than in patients without cancer (22.5%) (p = 0.014). In multivariate analyses, diabetes mellitus (DM) and cancer diagnosis were associated with hospital mortality. Cancer diagnosis was independently associated with mortality [odds ratio = 3.010 (95% confidence interval, 2.340-3.873), p = 0.001]. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that subjects with DM and cancer (n = 146) had lower survival rates than subjects with DM and without cancer (n = 687) (log rank test, p = 0.001). The presence of DM and cancer was independently associated with mortality in AKI patients both with and without cancer. Studies are warranted to determine whether proactive measures may limit AKI and improve outcomes.

Cardiac involvement in hypereosinophilia associated with toxocariasis.

Cardiac involvement in hypereosinophilia is rare; when present, it manifests as ventricular thickening, usually with fibrous tissue and mural thrombosis. We present a case of a 57-year-old man with an abnormal right ventricular apex with eosinophilia, which was caused by Toxocara canis infection.

Wall shear stress in hypertensive patients is associated with carotid vascular deformation assessed by speckle tracking strain imaging.

INTRODUCTION: Wall shear stress (WSS) is critically important in both vascular remodeling and atherosclerosis. Carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and deformation parameters have been used as relevant indicators of carotid atherosclerosis. This study aimed to investigate the relationships between hemodynamic parameters in the common carotid artery (CCA) and the severity of carotid atherosclerosis in untreated hypertensive patients. METHODS: Carotid artery ultrasound was performed in 100 untreated hypertensive patients. Morphologic and hemodynamic parameters of the CCA, including peak and mean WSS, global circumferential strain, peak posterior radial strain assessed by two-dimensional speckle tracking method, and IMT, were measured. RESULTS: In patients with hypertension, there were significant correlations between carotid strain parameters and peak/mean WSS. Stepwise multiple regression analysis for carotid strain parameters after adjustment for age, carotid IMT, and brachial pulse wave velocity showed that peak WSS was an independent determinant of peak posterior radial strain (p = 0.009) and global circumferential strain (p = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that local shear stress is associated with carotid vascular deformation, which could be an underlying mechanism for the progression of atherosclerosis.