Differences in pathological characteristics and laboratory indicators in adult and pediatric patients with Henoch-Schönlein purpura nephritis

We aimed to investigate the differences in renal histopathological changes and laboratory parameters between adult and pediatric patients with Henoch-Schönlein purpura nephritis (HSPN), and to analyze the correlation between laboratory parameters and renal histopathological grading. A total of 139 patients diagnosed with HSPN between September 2010 and December 2014 at the First Hospital of Jilin University, China, were retrospectively reviewed. The clinical and pathological characteristics were examined and compared between the adult and the pediatric patients. A majority of adult (75.0%) and pediatric (66.2%) patients were categorized as pathological grade III HSPN. Adults having crescent lesions, interstitial fibrosis and renal artery involvement significantly outnumbered child counterparts (all P <0.05). Pathological grading showed a positive correlation with 24-h urine protein ( r =0.307, P =0.009), microalbuminuria ( r =0.266, P =0.000) and serum globulin ( r =0.307, P =0.014), and a negative correlation with serum albumin ( r =0.249, P =0.037) in pediatric patients with HSPN. Among adult patients with HSPN, histopathological grading showed a positive correlation with 24-h urine protein ( r =0.294, P =0.015), microalbuminuria ( r =0.352, P =0.006), α1-microglobulin ( r =0.311, P =0.019) and immunoglobulin G ( r =0.301, P =0.023) in urine, and serum creatinine ( r =0.292, P =0.018). Further, a negative correlation between serum albumin and pathological grading was also observed ( r =0.291, P =0.018). In conclusion, the severity of renal pathological lesions in HSPN patients is well reflected by the levels of proteinuria. Adult patients have more severe renal histopathological changes than pediatric patients.