Characteristics of children with IgA nephropathy.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: We analyzed the demographic and clinical characteristics of children with immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy using data in the first pages of electronic health records of 22 hospitals from 2016 to 2018. METHODS: Information collected included gender, age, infection site, etiological infection, acute kidney injury (AKI), and chronic kidney disease (CKD) stages 2-5. We analyzed the gender and age distribution of children with IgA nephropathy, the characteristics of children complicated with AKI and CKD, and the influence of geographical distribution and economic status on the incidence of IgA nephropathy. RESULTS: We included a total of 4006 patients with IgA nephropathy. Incidence in males gradually increased with age. Seventy-nine cases (1.97%) had AKI. We found no significant difference in gender (P = 0.19) or age (P = 0.07) between the AKI and non-AKI groups. Twenty-nine patients had CKD (0.72%), who were significantly older than those in the non-CKD group (P < 0.0001). The incidence of IgA nephropathy in less-developed areas was significantly lower than that in developed areas (P = 0.0002). CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of IgA nephropathy was high mainly in males. Age was an important factor affecting CKD. The disease was related to environment and economic status. IMPACT We analyze the demographic and clinical characteristics of children with immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy using data in the first pages of electronic health records. This is a large sample, multi-center study. The incidence of IgA nephropathy in males increased gradually with age. Age was an important factor affecting CKD. The disease was related to environment and economic status.