The predictive value of free thyroxine combined with tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis for poor prognosis in patients with IgA nephropathy.

Background: IgA nephropathy (IgAN), the most common type of glomerulonephritis, has great individual differences in prognosis. Many studies showed the relationship between thyroid hormones and chronic kidney disease. However, the relationship between free thyroxine (FT4), as a thyroid hormone, and IgAN is still unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of FT4 on IgAN prognosis. Methods: This retrospective study involved 223 patients with biopsy-proven IgAN. The renal composite outcomes were defined as: (1) ESRD, defined as eGFR < 15 ml/(min·1.73 m2) or initiation of renal replacement therapy (hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, renal transplantation); (2) serum creatinine doubled from baseline; (3) eGFR decreased by more than 50% from baseline. The predictive value was determined by the area under the curve (AUC). Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards analyses assessed renal progression and prognosis. Results: After 38 (26-54) months of follow-up, 23 patients (10.3%) experienced renal composite outcomes. Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed that the renal survival rate of the IgAN patients with FT4<15.18pmol/L was lower than that with FT4≥15.18pmol/L (P < 0. 001). Multivariate Cox regression model analysis showed that FT4 was a protective factor for poor prognosis of IgAN patients, whether as a continuous variable or a categorical variable (HR 0.68, 95%CI 0.51-0.90, P =0.007; HR 0.04, 95%CI 0.01-0.20, P <0.001). ROC curve analysis showed that FT4 combined with t score had a high predictive value for poor prognosis of IgAN patients (AUC=0.881, P<0.001). Conclusion: FT4 was a protective factor for IgAN. In addition, FT4 combined with tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis had a high predictive value for poor prognosis of IgAN.

The prognostic role of heart rate recovery after exercise and metabolic syndrome in IgA nephropathy.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality are higher in chronic kidney disease (CKD) than in the general population. Reduced heart rate recovery (HRR) is an independent risk factor for CV disease. The aim of the study was to determine the prognostic role of HRR in a homogenous group of CKD patients. METHODS: One hundred and twenty-five IgA nephropathy patients (82 male, 43 female, age 54.7 ± 13 years) with CKD stage 1-4 were investigated and followed for average 70 months. We performed a graded exercise treadmill stress test. HRR was derived from the difference of the peak heart rate and the heart rate at 1 min after exercise. Patients were divided into two groups by the mean HRR value (22.9 beats/min). The composite (CV and renal) endpoints included all-cause mortality and any CV event such as stroke, myocardial infarction, revascularisation (CV) and end-stage renal disease, renal replacement therapy (renal). RESULTS: Patients with reduced HRR (< 23 bpm) had significantly more end point events (22/62 patients vs. 9/53 patients, p = 0.013) compared to the higher HRR (≥23 bpm). Of the secondary the endpoints (CV or renal separately) rate of the renal endpoint was significantly higher in the lower HRR group (p = 0.029), while there was no significant difference in the CV endpoint between the two HRR groups (p = 0.285). Independent predictors of survival were eGFR and diabetes mellitus by using Cox regression analysis. Kaplan-Meier curves showed significant differences in metabolic syndrome and non-metabolic syndrome when examined at the combined endpoints (cardiovascular and renal) or at each endpoint separately. The primary endpoint rate was increased significantly with the increased number of metabolic syndrome component (Met.sy. comp. 0 vs. Met. sy. comp. 2+, primary endpoints, p = 0.012). CONCLUSION: Our results showed that reduced HRR measured by treadmill exercise test has a predictive value for the prognosis of IgA nephropathy. The presence of metabolic syndrome may worsen the prognosis of IgA nephropathy.

Lower serum bilirubin is associated with poor renal outcome in IgA nephropathy patients.

Aims: IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most prevalent primary glomerulonephritis worldwide. We conducted this study to explore the relationship between serum bilirubin and renal outcome of patients with IgAN. Methods: A total of 1492 biopsy proven IgAN patients were recruited and divided into two groups according to their median serum bilirubin concentration: the low bilirubin group (serum bilirubin≤9.7umol/L, n=753) and high bilirubin group (serum bilirubin>9.7umol/L, n=739). Basic clinical characteristics were assessed at the time of renal biopsy and the relationships between serum bilirubin and the combined endpoints were analyzed. The combined endpoints were defined as a 50% decline in estimate glomerular filtration rate (e-GFR), end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), renal transplantation and/or death. In addition, propensity score matching (PSM) was then performed to improve balance and simulate randomization between patients in different groups. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was applied to explore the role of serum bilirubin in the progression of IgAN. Three clinicopathological models of multivariate Cox regression analysis were established to evaluate the association of serum bilirubin and renal prognosis of IgAN. Results: During median 5-year follow-up period, significant differences were shown in Kaplan-Meier analysis. In the unmatched group, 189 (12.7%) patients progressed to the renal combined endpoints. Among this, 122 in 753 patients (16.2%) were in low bilirubin group and 67 in 739 patients (9.1%) were in high bilirubin group (p<0.001). After PSM, there were 134 (11.8%) patients reached the combined endpoints, which included 77 in 566 patients (14.6%) in low bilirubin group and 57 in 566 patients (10.1%) in high bilirubin group (p=0.039). The results of three models (including demographics, pathological, clinical indicators and serum bilirubin) demonstrated that a lower basic serum bilirubin level was significantly associated with a higher risk of reaching combined endpoints in IgAN patients both in unmatched and matched cohort. Conclusion: Serum bilirubin level may be negatively associated with the progression of IgAN.

Relationship between blood neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis in IgA nephropathy patients.

BACKGROUND: The study aimed to explore the relationship between neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio(NLR) in peripheral blood and renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis and to evaluate the clinical significance of NLR in IgA nephropathy (IgAN) patients. METHODS: A Total of 263 IgAN patients were included. The participants were categorized into four groups based on quartile of NLR. The clinical data, pathological features, and 2-year renal survival rates were compared among the four groups. The independent factors affecting renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis in IgAN were determined by multivariate linear regression analysis. RESULTS: The percentage of renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis increased with the increase of NLR level (p=0.003). The tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis score T1 and T2 in Group Q4 was 40%, which was higher than that of other groups, especially Group Q1 (22.73%, p=0.033) and Group Q3 (22.39%, p=0.029). NLR [ß=1.230, 95%CI (0.081, 2.379), p=0.036] might be an independent factor affecting renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis in IgAN. The area under curve predicted by NLR was 0.596 (95%CI 0.534~0.656, p=0.007) with the specificity 88.24% and the optimal critical value of NLR 3.25. Fourteen patients progressed to end-stage renal disease within 2 years, and the 2-year survival rate of kidney was 93.49%. The renal survival rate in Group Q4 was 87.04%, lower than that in other three groups, especially Group Q1 (98.11%, p=0.029). CONCLUSION: NLR was correlated with the level of renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis and might be a significant factor for predicting the prognosis in the IgAN. BACKGROUND: IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is an important cause of the end stage renal disease (ESRD). The study aimed to explore the relationship between neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in peripheral blood and renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis, and to evaluate the clinical significance of NLR in IgA nephropathy (IgAN) patients. METHODS: Total 263 IgAN patients confirmed by renal biopsy pathology were included from January 2013 to May 2018 in Ningbo Hwamei Hospital, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. The peripheral blood samples were taken from these participants and the NLR was analyzed. The participants were categorized into four groups based on the median and upper and lower quartile of NLR, which were Group Q1 (NLR<1.64), Group Q2 (1.64≤NLR<2.19), Group Q3 (2.19≤NLR<3.00), and Group Q4 (NLR≥3.00), respectively. The clinical data and pathological features were compared among four groups. The independent factors affecting renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis in IgAN were determined by multivariate linear regression analysis. The diagnostic ability of NLR for renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis was evaluated by the area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). The 2-year renal survival rates were compared among the four groups. RESULTS: The levels of white blood cell count, neutrophil count, highly sensitive C-reactive protein, and the percentage of renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis were increased while lymphocyte count and estimated glomerular filtration rate were decreased with the increase of NLR level (P < 0.05). The percentage of tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis 26%-50% (T1) and >50% (T2) in Group Q4 was 40%, which was higher than that of other groups, especially Group Q1 (22.73%) and Group Q3 (22.39%), with significant difference (P < 0.05). NLR [ß = 1.230, 95%CI (0.081, 2.379), P = 0.036] might be an independent factor affecting renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis in IgAN according to multivariate linear regression analysis results. The AUC predicted by NLR was 0.596 (95%CI 0.534~0.656, P = 0.007) with the specificity 88.24%, the sensitivity 30.00% and the optimal critical value of NLR 3.25. Fourteen patients progressed to end-stage renal disease within 2 years; and the 2-year survival rate of kidney was 93.49%. The renal survival rate in Group Q4 was 87.04%, lower than that in other three groups, especially Group Q1 (98.11%), with significant difference (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: NLR was correlated with the level of renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis and might be an significant factor for predicting the prognosis in IgAN.

Severe glomerular C3 deposition indicates severe renal lesions and a poor prognosis in patients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy.

AIMS: Glomerular complement 3 (C3) deposition is often observed in renal biopsies of patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN); however, the relationship between the intensity of C3 deposition and the long-term prognosis of IgAN has rarely been reported. In this retrospective study, we aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of glomerular C3 deposition for IgAN progression. METHODS AND RESULTS: From June 2009 to June 2010, a total of 136 adult patients with IgAN were enrolled in the study. According to the intensity of glomerular C3 deposition, patients were divided into a glomerular C3high group (34 patients) and a glomerular C3low group (102 patients). The levels of clinical parameters, glomerular immune complexes, histopathological features, and serum cytokines of the two groups were compared. On the basis of an average of 105 months of follow-up, the predictive value of glomerular C3 deposition for IgAN progression was also investigated. Patients in the C3high group had more severe glomerular IgA, IgG, IgM, and complement factor H deposition, a higher percentage of mesangial hypercellularity (M1), and higher levels of segmental glomerulosclerosis (S1), tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis (T2), and crescents (C2) than those in the C3low group. Renal biopsies in the C3high group showed higher densities of interstitial inflammatory cells and higher levels of serum interferon-γ than those in the C3low group. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that a higher intensity of glomerular C3 deposition remained as an independent predictor of serum creatinine doubling and end-stage renal disease. CONCLUSIONS: A high intensity of glomerular C3 deposition is associated with the severity of renal lesions, and predicts long-term poor renal survival for IgAN patients.

The prognostic value of platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio on the long-term renal survival in patients with IgA nephropathy.

PURPOSE: Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) was established showing the poor prognosis in several diseases, such as malignancies and cardiovascular diseases. But limited study has been conducted about the prognostic value of PLR on the long-term renal survival of patients with Immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN). METHODS: We performed an observational cohort study enrolling patients with biopsy-proven IgAN recorded from November 2011 to March 2016. The definition of composite endpoint was eGFR decrease by 50%, eGFR < 15 mL/min/1.73 m2, initiation of dialysis, or renal transplantation. Patients were categorized by the magnitude of PLR tertiles into three groups. The Kaplan-Meier curves and multivariate Cox models were performed to determine the association of PLR with the renal survival of IgAN patients. RESULTS: 330 patients with a median age of 34.0 years were followed for a median of 47.4 months, and 27 patients (8.2%) had reached the composite endpoints. There were no differences among the three groups (PLR < 106, 106 ≤ PLR ≤ 137, and PLR > 137) in demographic characteristics, mean arterial pressure (MAP), proteinuria, and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at baseline. The Kaplan-Meier curves showed that the PLR > 137 group was significantly more likely to poor renal outcomes than the other two groups. Using univariate and multivariate cox regression analyses, we found that PLR > 137 was an independent prognostic factor for poor renal survival in patients with IgAN. Subgroup analysis revealed that the PLR remained the prognostic value for female patients or patients with eGFR less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m2. CONCLUSIONS: Our results underscored that baseline PLR was an independent prognostic factor for poor renal survival in patients with IgAN, especially for female patients or those patients with baseline eGFR less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m2.

Clinical and prognostic significance of C1q deposition in IgAN patients-a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND/AIM: IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most prevalent primary glomerular disease worldwide and is responsible for 45-50% of primary glomerular diseases in China. We are essentially dependent on the degree of proteinuria to determine prognosis and it has been reported that histopathologic lesions are risk factors for the progression of IgAN. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinicopathologic features and prognosis of IgAN with C1q deposition in adult Chinese patients. METHODS: The patients of primary IgAN diagnosed by renal biopsy from January 2002 to December 2018 at the Second Hospital of Shanxi Medical University were retrospectively analyzed and divided into C1q deposit group and C1q negative group according to glomerular immunofluorescence examination. We evaluated their serologic and histopathologic findings. We collected data of patients during January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018 and performed the clinical follow-up until the patient's estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decreased by more than 30%, entering end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to evaluate the cumulative incidence of renal progression in two groups. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to analyze the effect of C1q deposition on the prognosis of patients with IgA nephropathy. RESULTS: The baseline data of total 491 cases were available and 172 cases had the follow-up data. The baseline eGFR and plasma albumin (ALB) levels in C1q deposit group were lower than those in the C1q negative group, while the levels of serum creatinine (Scr), total cholesterol (TC), 24 h urine protein, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), ß2 microglobulin, etc. were higher than those in C1q negative group (all P < 0.05). Pathological indexes: glomerular segment sclerosis and adhesion (S), renal tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis (T), and cell/fibroblastic crescent (C) scores in C1q deposit group were higher than those in C1q negative group (all P < 0.05). With a median follow-up time of 32.5 (24,42) months, a total of 18 patients (C1q deposit: 11; C1q negative: 7) developed to endpoints. Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed that there was significant decrease in cumulative incidence of renal progression between the two groups (Log-rank test χ2 = 4.78, P = 0.029). Cox regression analysis showed that the risk of renal end-point events in IgAN patients with C1q deposit group was 6.35 times higher than that in C1q negative group (HR = 6.35, 95% CI: 1.21-33.30, P = 0.029). CONCLUSION: The clinical and renal pathological changes of IgAN patients with C1q deposition are more severe than those of C1q negative patients, and has a worse outcome. C1q deposition is an independent risk factor for the progression of renal function and contributes to a poor renal prognosis in adult IgAN patients.

Increased serum uric acid levels are associated to renal arteriolopathy and predict poor outcome in IgA nephropathy.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common primary glomerulonephritis worldwide and a leading cause of end stage renal disease (ESRD). In addition to classical progression factors, other atherosclerosis-related factors, including hyperuricemia (HU), have been associated to the renal progression of IgAN. Increased serum uric acid (SUA) levels are well known to be concomitant of cardiovascular and kidney diseases, and have been proposed to be implicated in the development of arteriolar damage (AD). The aim of the present study was to explore the correlation between SUA levels, renal damage and its implication for outcome in IgAN patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: Clinical, laboratory and histologic data of 145 patients with biopsy proven IgAN were collected and retrospectively analyzed to determine the correlation between SUA levels, renal damage and the primary outcome (death or ESRD). Biopsy-proven AD was defined by the presence of arteriolar hyalinosis and/or intimal thickening. HU, defined as the highest SUA gender-specific tertile, was >7.7 mg/dl for males and >6.2 mg/dl for females. The prevalence of AD increased with the increase in the SUA level tertiles (p = 0.02). At logistic regression analysis SUA was independently related to the presence of AD (OR 1.75 [95%CI 1.10-2.93], p = 0.03). HU and AD had a synergic impact on progression of IgAN. Patients having both AD and HU, showed a reduced survival free from the primary outcome as compared to those having only one risk factor or neither (p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: SUA levels are independently associated with AD and poor prognosis in patients with IgAN.

Crescents formations are independently associated with higher mortality in biopsy-confirmed immunoglobulin A nephropathy.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Immunoglobulin A Nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common type of glomerulonephritis with variable renal outcome. The association between IgAN and patient survival is limited. The effect of crescents on patient survival was never studied. MATERIALS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study between January 2003 and December 2013. All patients with the biopsy-proved IgAN was enrolled for the analysis of patient survival and renal survival. Cox regression model was used analyze the associated factors for patient survival. RESULTS: All 388 participants with IgAN were enrolled, in which 45 patients with crescents. The mean percentage of glomeruli involvement was 23±18.9%. After long-term follow-up, crescents group had both worse renal (p = 0.034) and patient survivals (p = 0.016). In univariate Cox regression model, the age (HR = 1.08, 95% CI = 1.05-1.12, p<0.001), crescents (HR = 3.93, 95% CI = 1.18-13.07, p = 0.025), serum albumin (HR = 0.023, 95%CI = 0.11-0.50, p<0.001), blood total protein (HR = 0.46, 95%CI = 0.28-0.75, p = 0.002), HDL (HR = 0.95, 95%CI = 0.91-0.99, p = 0.009), daily urine protein (HR = 1.14, 95%CI = 1.01-1.29, p = 0.038), urine PCR (HR = 1.07, 95%CI = 1.02-1.12, p = 0.003), serum IgM (HR = 0.98, 95%CI = 0.96-1.00, p = 0.036), BUN (HR = 1.02, 95%CI = 1.01-1.02, p = 0.005), and eGFR (HR = 0.097, 95%CI = 0.94-0.99, p = 0.0011) were associated with patient survival. After multivariate Cox regression analysis, age (HR = 1.08, 95%CI = 1.01-1.13, p = 0.013), crescents (HR = 5.57, 95%CI = 1.14-29.05, p = 0.034), and HDL (HR = 0.94, 95%CI = 0.90-0.99, p = 0.026) were associated with patient survival. Crescents IgAN is with the highest risk (up to 5.75 of HR) for patient mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The major strengths of the present study is that crescents IgAN had worse patient survival compared to non-crescents IgAN. Clinicians should be more careful to care patients with crescents IgAN.

Renal survival and risk factors in IgA nephropathy with crescents.

PURPOSE: The association between crescents and renal outcomes was inconsistent in a Chinese IgA nephropathy (IgAN) cohort, and limited research has investigated the prognosis of IgAN patients with crescents. METHODS: Between January 2008 and January 2013, 169 consecutive IgAN patients with crescents in the Xijing Hospital, who were matched to IgAN patients without crescents at a 1:1 ratio by sex, age, eGFR, and proteinuria were reviewed. Combined events were defined by either a ≥ 50% reduction in eGFR or ESRD. RESULTS: All patients were followed for a mean of 49.9 ± 26.0 months, and 41 (12.1%) patients had developed combined events. Five multivariate Cox regression models were created, and crescents was an independent risk factor for combined events. In model 5, crescents (HR = 2.216, 95% CI 1.040-4.345, P = 0.039) were notably associated with the risk of combined events after adjusting for age, sex, smoking, TA-P, persistent hematuria, and TA-MAP. Of the IgAN patients with crescents, 17.2% had developed combined events. In the baseline variables model, age, proteinuria, eGFR, E1, T1-T2, and RAAS had statistically significant associations with combined events in the multivariate Cox regression analyses. In the time varying variables model, TA-P, persistent hematuria, and TA-MAP were independent risk factors for combined events. CONCLUSION: We validated that the presence of crescents was an independent predictor of combined events in Chinese IgAN patients. Age, proteinuria, eGFR, E1, T1-T2, RAAS, TA-P, persistent hematuria, and TA-MAP were independent risk factors for combined events in IgAN patients with crescents.

The precise long-term outcomes of adult IgA nephropathy by mail questionnaires: Better renal survival compared to earlier cohort studies.

The estimated 20-year renal survival rate of immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy is approx. 60%, but it is difficult to determine the 'big picture' for IgA nephropathy because a biopsy is essential for its diagnosis. Here we attempted to determine the longer and more precise renal prognosis of IgA nephropathy. We examined 310 patients with primary IgA nephropathy. Using the patients' clinical records and histological reports from our hospital and other clinics, we surveyed their renal prognoses and treatments within 1 year post-biopsy, and we sent questionnaires to the patients who had stopped visiting any hospital. We set renal death as the primary endpoint and analyzed factors related to renal death. The total patient cohort was 267: 159 males, 108 females; average age at biopsy, 37.7 years; average estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), 69.7 mL/min/1.73m2; urinary protein, 1.3 g/day. The mean follow-up duration was prolonged to 13.8±8.9 years (vs. 9.2±8.5 years using only medical records). The 10- and 20-year follow-up rates were 61.7% and 27.3%. The 10-, 20-year renal survival rates were 83.6% and 72.5%. Lower eGFR, hypertension, and smoking were revealed as factors independently related to renal death. To study survival of relatively benign diseases such as IgA nephropathy, longer survival rate was affected by many censoring cases. The results regarding the long-term renal prognoses of IgA nephropathy patients (including those with a mild phenotype) obtained by our analysis of a questionnaire sent to the patients provided more precise and longer-term prognoses compared to earlier studies.

Treatment effects of Chinese medicine (Yi-Qi-Qing-Jie herbal compound) combined with immunosuppression therapies in IgA nephropathy patients with high-risk of end-stage renal disease (TCM-WINE): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common glomerular disease worldwide. It has a high incidence in Asians and is more likely to progress to end-stage renal disease (ESRD). For high-risk IgAN, which is clinically characterized by massive proteinuria and renal dysfunction, however, there has been no international consensus on treatment options. Compared with other developed countries, IgAN patients in China are often found to have severe kidney function loss at initial diagnosis. Yi-Qi-Qing-Jie formula (YQF; a compound recipe of Chinese medicinal herbs) has shown potential renal protection in our previous clinical studies. To further confirm the efficacy and safety of YQF in the treatment of high-risk IgAN, we have designed a prospective double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial. METHODS/DESIGN: The TCM-WINE study is a single-center, prospective, double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial. We plan to randomize 60 participants with biopsy-proven IgAN to a YQF combined group (YQF compound combined with prednisolone, and cyclophosphamide if necessary) or an immunosuppression group (placebo-YQF combined with prednisolone, and cyclophosphamide if necessary). The two groups will enter a 48-week in-trial treatment phase and receive post-trial follow-up until study completion (3 years). All patients will receive optimal supportive care. The primary composite outcome is defined as the first occurrence of a 40% decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) from the baseline lasting for 3 months, initiating continuous renal replacement treatment, or death due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) during the 3-year study phase. The secondary endpoint events are defined as the mean annual eGFR decline rate (eGFR slope, ml/min per 1.73 m2 per year), which is calculated by the eGFR regression curve for each eligible patient, and proteinuria remission (prescribed as proteinuria < 0.5 g/day) at weeks 24, 36, and 48 during the in-trial phase. The remission rate of symptoms and inflammation status will be evaluated at week 48. Safety monitoring and assessment will be undertaken during the study. DISCUSSION: The TCM-WINE study will evaluate the effects and safety of YQF combined therapy compared with immunosuppression monotherapy on the basis of the optimal supportive treatment in high-risk IgAN. The evidence from this study will provide a novel, effective, and safe Chinese characteristic therapy for high-risk IgAN patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03418779. Registered on 18 June 2018.

An Interpretable Machine Learning Survival Model for Predicting Long-term Kidney Outcomes in IgA Nephropathy.

IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is common worldwide and has heterogeneous phenotypes. Predicting long-term outcomes is important for clinical decision-making. As right-censored patients become common during the long-term follow-up, either excluding these patients from the cohort or labeling them as control will bias the risk estimation. Thus, we constructed a survival model using EXtreme Gradient Boosting for survival (XSBoost-Surv), to accurately predict the prognosis of IgAN patients by taking the time-to-event information into the modeling procedure. Shapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) was employed to interpret the individual predicted result and the non-linear relationships between the predictors and outcome. Experiments on real-world data showed our model achieved superior discrimination performance over other conventional survival methods. By providing insights into the exact changes in risk induced by certain characteristics of the patients, this explainable and accurate survival model can help improve the clinical understanding of renal progression and benefit the therapies for the IgAN patients.

Alemtuzumab Induction and Steroid Minimization in IgA Nephropathy: A Matched-Cohort Analysis.

OBJECTIVES: Immunoglobulin A nephropathy is the most common primary glomerulonephritis in adults. Transplant can be complicated by immunoglobulin A nephropathy recurrence in up to 60% of allografts, sometimes causing graftloss.The use of alemtuzumab for induction therapy in the setting of steroid minimization for recipients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy is unclear. Here, we investigated patient and graft outcomes in patients with this condition who were induced with alemtuzumab and a steroid minimization protocol. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of a database containing 29 patients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy and 646 other recipients who underwent transplant and were induced with alemtuzumab and steroid minimization treatment between March 2006 and May 2015. A matched cohort generated using propensity scoring was also analyzed. RESULTS: Recipients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy were significantly younger at transplant (37.3 ± 11.9 vs 55.6 ± 13.4 years; P < .001), less likely to be African American (6.9% vs 23.2%; P = .04), less likely to have diabetes mellitus (10.3% vs 39.8%; P < .001), and more likely to have private insurance (72.4% vs 45.9%; P = .007). There were no significant differences in graft and patient survival. Recipients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy experienced a higher rate of 1-year rejection (24.1% vs 21.4%; P = .043). Of the 29 patients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy, 8 experienced recurrence (27.6%; average time of 1120.5 ± 982.9 days), with all 8 patients having allograftloss. Matched pair analyses did not yield significant differences in outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Recurrence rate of immunoglobulin A nephropathy in those induced with alemtuzumab in the setting of steroid minimization is similar to previously reported rates. Although recipients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy had significantly higher 1-year rejection rate, no other differences in graft or patient survival were shown versus recipients without this condition.

Efficacy of corticosteroids in immunoglobulin A nephropathy with less than 25% crescents.

BACKGROUND: Crescent formation in immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN) has been demonstrated to be a risk factor for worse outcomes. For IgAN patients with 0-25% crescentic glomeruli (C1), whether corticosteroids (CS) can improve the prognosis remains unclear. We tried to investigate the need for using CS in IgAN patients with C1 in different proteinuria levels. METHODS: A total of 120 eligible IgAN patients with C1 from two academic medical centers were retrospectively studied, and 57 (47.5%) received CS. Patients were grouped according to with or without CS. The outcomes were the rate of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decline (ml/min per 1.73 m2/year) and a composite outcome (50% decrease in eGFR, end stage renal disease (ESRD) or death due to kidney disease). The progression of adverse outcome among them were analyzed in Kaplan-Meier curve. The independent significance of CS on renal outcome or eGFR decline rate were analyzed by multivariable Cox regression or linear regression. RESULTS: Unadjusted Kaplan-Meier showed that the outcome of treated patients was better than that of the untreated patients. Multiple Cox regression and linear regression analysis found that CS independently protected the renal outcome and decreased the eGFR decline rate. In the subgroup analysis, multivariate linear regression showed that CS decreased the eGFR decline rate both in proteinuria ≥ 1 g/day and < 1 g/day. CONCLUSIONS: CS protected the renal outcome and slowed the eGFR decline rate of IgAN patients with C1, it also decreased the eGFR decline rate even in those with initial proteinuria < 1 g/day.

Clinical, pathological characteristics and outcomes of immunoglobulin A nephropathy patients with different ages.

AIM: To determine the clinical and pathological differences in immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy (IgAN) with different ages, and to determine whether age is a risk factor for progression of IgAN. METHODS: This was a single centre retrospective cohort study. Patients with biopsy-diagnosed primary IgAN were stratified into three groups: young-aged (14-29 years), middle-aged (30-49 years) and older-age (≥50 years). The primary outcome was end-stage renal disease (estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] <15 mL/min/1.73 m2 , dialysis or renal transplantation) or doubling of the baseline serum creatinine. RESULTS: A total of 981 patients were enrolled, including 65 (6.6%) patients in older-age group, 517 (52.7%) in middle-aged group and 399 (40.7%) in young-aged group. The older-age group had significantly higher levels of serum IgA, cholesterol, triglycerides and creatinine, and a reduced eGFR. In contrast to the young adults who had a higher percentage of crescent formation in glomeruli, the older-aged patients had more severe chronic pathological changes including global glomerulosclerosis and vascular lesions (p < .01). The cumulative renal survival in the older-age group was slightly shorter than that in the young adult or middle-aged group, but not achieving significant (p > .05). The 3- and 5-year renal survival rates were similar among the three groups. A multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that age was not an independent predictor of an unfavourable prognosis. CONCLUSION: The IgAN patients with aged 50 years or older had different clinical pathological changes as compared with younger patients. However, aging was not found as an independently predictor of renal progression of IgAN. Prolonged follow up is necessary to confirm this trend.

Clinical and pathological features of immunoglobulin A nephropathy patients with nephrotic syndrome.

IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common glomerulonephritis worldwide. The classic manifestation of IgAN is episodic hematuria and proteinuria. Nephrotic syndrome (NS) is not very common in IgAN, reported to occur in only 5-10% of IgAN patients. However, the clinical and pathological characteristics and long-term outcomes of patients with NS-IgAN at onset remain unknown. A retrospective study was conducted, enrolling 1165 patients with biopsy-proven IgAN from West China Hospital in 2008-2015. Patients with renal biopsy of minimal change disease with mesangial IgA deposits were excluded. The renal endpoint was defined as 50% decrease in eGFR or progressing into end-stage renal disease (ESRD). A total of 1165 patients were enrolled with average age of 34.58, and 171 (14.7%) patients were presented with NS. Comparing NS and non-NS groups, significance differences were shown in hypertension (HTN), 24-h urine protein, serum albumin, serum creatine, eGFR and uric acid. NS group had severe pathological changes such as endocapillary hypercellularity, tubular atrophy or interstitial fibrosis and crescent, but less segmental glomerulosclerosis or adhesion and global sclerosis. During the average follow-up of 44.27 months, 29.8% (51/171) NS patients and 15.8% (157/994) non-NS patients progressed to the renal endpoint. 5-year renal survival rates were 73.1% and 87.8% (P < 0.001) in NS and non-NS groups, respectively. This study demonstrated that IgAN patients with NS had higher serum creatine, lower eGFR, lower uric acid, more acute lesions and poor prognosis. NS was an independent risk factor for progression to the renal endpoint.

Association Between Tonsillectomy and Outcomes in Patients With Immunoglobulin A Nephropathy.

Importance: Immunoglobulin A nephropathy is a major cause of end-stage renal disease worldwide; previous methods of medical management, including use of renin-angiotensin system inhibitors and corticosteroids, remain unproven in clinical trials. Objective: To investigate the possible association between tonsillectomy and outcomes in patients with IgA nephropathy. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study included 1065 patients with IgA nephropathy enrolled between 2002 and 2004 and divided into 2 groups, those who underwent tonsillectomy and those who did not. Initial treatments (renin-angiotensin system inhibitors or corticosteroids) within 1 year after renal biopsy were also evaluated. A 1:1 propensity score matching was performed to account for between-group differences and 153 matched pairs were obtained. Follow-up concluded January 31, 2014. Analysis was conducted between September 11, 2017, and July 31, 2018. Exposure: Tonsillectomy. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was the first occurrence of a 1.5-fold increase in serum creatinine level from baseline or dialysis initiation. Secondary outcomes included additional therapy with renin-angiotensin system inhibitors or corticosteroids initiated 1 year after renal biopsy and adverse events. Results: In 1065 patients (49.8% women; median [interquartile range] age, 35 [25-52] years), the mean (SD) estimated glomerular filtration rate was 76.6 (28.9) mL/min/1.73 m2 and the median (interquartile range) proteinuria was 0.68 (0.29-1.30) g per day. In all, 252 patients (23.7%) underwent tonsillectomy within 1 year after renal biopsy and 813 patients (76.3%) did not undergo tonsillectomy. The primary outcome was reached by 129 patients (12.1%) during a median (interquartile range) follow-up of 5.8 (1.9-8.5) years. In matching analysis, tonsillectomy was associated with primary outcome reduction (hazard ratio, 0.34; 95% CI, 0.13-0.77; P = .009). In subgroup analyses, benefit associated with tonsillectomy was not modified by baseline characteristic differences. Those undergoing tonsillectomy required fewer additional therapies 1 year following renal biopsy (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.37; 95% CI, 0.20-0.63; P < .001) without increased risks for adverse events, except transient tonsillectomy-related complications. Conclusions and Relevance: This study found that tonsillectomy was associated with a lower risk of renal outcomes in patients with IgA nephropathy. The potential role of tonsillectomy should be considered for preventing end-stage renal disease in patients with IgA nephropathy.

Mortality in IgA Nephropathy: A Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: The clinical course of IgA nephropathy (IgAN) varies from asymptomatic nonprogressive to aggressive disease, with up to one in four patients manifesting ESRD within 20 years of diagnosis. Although some studies have suggested that mortality appears to be increased in IgAN, such studies lacked matched controls and did not report absolute risk. METHODS: We conducted a population-based cohort study in Sweden, involving patients with biopsy-verified IgAN diagnosed in 1974-2011; main outcome measures were death and ESRD. Using data from three national registers, we linked 3622 patients with IgAN with 18,041 matched controls; we also conducted a sibling analysis using 2773 patients with IgAN with 6210 siblings and a spousal analysis that included 2234 pairs. RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 13.6 years, 577 (1.1%) patients with IgAN died (10.67 per 1000 person-years) compared with 2066 deaths (0.7%) in the reference population during a median follow-up of 14.1 years (7.45 per 1000 person-years). This corresponded to a 1.53-fold increased risk and an absolute excess mortality of 3.23 per 1000 person-years (equaling one extra death per 310 person-years) and a 6-year reduction in median life expectancy. Similar increases in risk were seen in comparisons with siblings and spouses. IgAN was associated with one extra case of ESRD per 54 person-years. Mortality preceding ESRD was not significantly increased compared with controls, spouses, or siblings. Overall mortality did not differ significantly between patients with IgAN-associated ESRD and patients with ESRD from other causes. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with IgAN have an increased mortality compared with matched controls, with one extra death per 310 person-years and a 6-year reduction in life expectancy.

Galactose-deficient IgA1 and the corresponding IgG autoantibodies predict IgA nephropathy progression.

BACKGROUND: IgA nephropathy (IgAN), the most common primary glomerulonephritis worldwide, has serious outcomes with end-stage renal disease developing in 30-50% of patients. The diagnosis requires renal biopsy. Due to its inherent risks, non-invasive approaches are needed. METHODS: We evaluated 91 Czech patients with biopsy-proven IgAN who were assessed at time of diagnosis for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), proteinuria, microscopic hematuria, and hypertension, and then followed prospectively. Serum samples collected at diagnosis were analyzed for galactose-deficient IgA1 (Gd-IgA1) using new native-IgA1 and established neuraminidase-treated-IgA1 tests, Gd-IgA1-specific IgG autoantibodies, discriminant analysis and logistic regression model assessed correlations with renal function and Oxford classification (MEST score). RESULTS: Serum levels of native (P <0.005) and neuraminidase-treated (P <0.005) Gd-IgA1 were associated with the rate of eGFR decline. A higher relative degree of galactose deficiency in native serum IgA1 predicted a faster eGFR decline and poor renal survival (P <0.005). However, Gd-IgA1 has not differentiated patients with low vs. high baseline eGFR. Furthermore, patients with high baseline eGFR that was maintained during follow-up were characterized by low serum levels of Gd-IgA1-specific IgG autoantibodies (P = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: Including levels of native and neuraminidase-treated Gd-IgA1 and Gd-IgA1-specific autoantibodies at diagnosis may aid in the prognostication of disease progression in Czech patients with IgAN. Future tests will assess utility of these biomarkers in larger patients cohorts from geographically distinct areas.