Clinical features and outcomes in children with antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody-positive glomerulonephritis associated with propylthiouracil treatment

Abstract

A retrospective investigation was conducted by members of the Japanese Society for Pediatric Nephrology from 1990 to 1997 to define the clinical features and outcomes in children with antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (ANCA)-positive glomerulonephritis associated with propylthiouracil treatment. Seven Japanese pediatric patients who had myeloperoxidase-specific ANCA-positive biopsy-proven pauci-immune necrotizing crescentic glomerulonephritis associated with propylthiouracil administration were entered in the study. Three patients had nephritis alone, and four had nephritis and extrarenal organ system vasculitis. Females predominated, and the mean age at onset was 14 yr. Propylthiouracil was reduced or discontinued in all patients and was switched to methimazole in three patients. For the treatment of nephritis, five patients received corticosteroids; three had pulse methylprednisolone, one had plasma exchange, and one had plasma exchange and pulse methylprednisolone before initiating oral prednisolone. The remaining two patients received cyclophosphamide and corticosteroids, one of whom had pulse methylprednisolone before initiating oral prednisolone and cyclophosphamide. All patients achieved remission. In general, ANCA titers correlated with the response to treatment and disease activity, with some exceptions. No patient progressed to end-stage renal disease, renal dysfunction, or death during the follow-up period (58 +/- 25 mo; range, 32 to 108 mo). All but one patient remained euthyroid. In conclusion, this experience suggests that the clinical disease spectrum of ANCA-positive disease associated with propylthiouracil treatment is similar in pediatric and adult patients and that the overall prognosis may be better than that in the non-drug-induced ANCA-positive disease.