Epidemiology of primary nephrotic syndrome in Egyptian children

BACKGROUND: Primary nephrotic syndrome is a common renal problem in pediatrics, with great variation in patients' characteristics in different regions of the world. The aim of this study was to define these characteristics in Egyptian children with primary nephrotic syndrome. METHODS: Records of 100 primary nephrotic syndrome patients were retrospectively reviewed. Demographic, clinical, histopathological data and response to therapy were analyzed. RESULTS: The mean age of onset was 4.43 ± 2.7 years. Thirty-four percent of patients were steroid resistant, and 66% showed initial steroid response; 46 of the latter were steroid dependent. Forty patients underwent a renal biopsy with minimal change nephrotic syndrome occurring in 30%, mesangioproliferative glomerulonephritis in 37.5% and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis in 30%. Nine percent of cases developed chronic renal insufficiency. Response to cyclophosphamide and cyclosporine occurred in 37.5% and 33.3% of steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome patients, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: A greater percentage of steroid-resistant patients were found in our patients compared with those in other studies. Response to immunosuppressives was different from other studies, probably due to differences in the priority of selection for immunosuppressive therapy.