Characteristics of Nephrotic Syndrome

Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
Updated on September 22, 2024
00:00
00:00

The characteristic feature of nephrotic syndrome is that patients may experience edema, which is related to the nature of this disease. The essence of this disease is due to some reason that damages the glomerular capillary filtration barrier. As a result, when blood passes through the glomeruli, it leaks proteins from the blood. A 24-hour urinary protein quantification will exceed 3.5 grams, which constitutes a large amount of urinary protein. Consequently, a large amount of protein is leaked into the urine, causing the protein concentration in the plasma to decrease. This leads to a reduction in the colloidal osmotic pressure of the plasma, causing fluid to move from inside the blood vessels to outside, thus leading to edema. Therefore, the most significant clinical feature of nephrotic syndrome is the potential to cause edema, and severe cases of edema may elevate blood pressure, lead to pulmonary edema, manifesting as difficulty breathing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
1min 6sec home-news-image

What should I do about vomiting in nephrotic syndrome?

Patients with nephrotic syndrome experience significant urinary protein, which actually indicates glomerular lesions. If the patient does not have severe renal failure, such symptoms often do not lead to vomiting. If vomiting occurs, it is necessary to identify the cause, whether there is widespread edema, including gastrointestinal edema leading to vomiting, or if there is severe renal failure, even acute renal failure. In these cases, the patient's vomiting may be related to the nephrotic condition. Additionally, some medications used to treat nephrotic syndrome might cause vomiting and should be discontinued. If the vomiting is related to renal conditions, it is crucial to actively treat the primary disease and control nephrotic syndrome. However, if none of the above reasons are applicable, there might be an issue with the gastrointestinal tract itself, requiring consultation in gastroenterology, possibly needing a gastroscopy, and the use of medications to suppress stomach acid and promote gastrointestinal motility. (Please use medications under the guidance of a doctor.)

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
45sec home-news-image

Why does nephrotic syndrome cause sleepiness?

Excessive sleepiness is not a common clinical manifestation of nephrotic syndrome; generally, patients with nephrotic syndrome rarely exhibit excessive sleepiness. If a patient does display sleepiness, it is necessary to investigate the causes, such as a reduction in blood volume and decreased blood pressure caused by nephrotic syndrome, leading to insufficient cerebral blood supply. Furthermore, in cases of nephrotic syndrome, the patient’s immune capacity decreases, making them more susceptible to various infections, such as infections of the upper respiratory tract and lungs. When inflamed, patients are also likely to feel excessively sleepy. In some patients, there is a risk of cerebral infarction, which can also cause sleepiness.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhang Hui
Nephrology
1min 17sec home-news-image

How should you eat with nephrotic syndrome?

Nephrotic syndrome is characterized by urine protein greater than 3.5 grams, serum albumin less than 30, the presence of edema, and hyperlipidemia. Patients matching these criteria can be diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome. From its diagnosis, we can see that such patients have a high amount of urine protein and relatively low blood protein. For these patients, it is necessary to control their protein intake, generally suitable at 0.6-0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day. Due to hypoalbuminemia, as the liver synthesizes protein, it also leads to an increase in blood lipids. Therefore, patients with nephrotic syndrome need to follow a low-fat diet to avoid further elevation of blood lipids. Additionally, as patients with nephrotic syndrome generally have edema, it is necessary to restrict sodium intake to prevent sodium and water retention, further aggravating the edema.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
44sec home-news-image

Does nephrotic syndrome easily lead to cerebral infarction?

Nephrotic syndrome is a high-risk factor for cerebral infarction, making patients prone to strokes. This is because patients with nephrotic syndrome excrete large amounts of protein in their urine, which reduces protein concentration in the plasma and disrupts the anticoagulant fibrinolysis system, leading to an increased tendency to form blood clots. These clots are prone to develop in the veins of the lower extremities and the renal veins, and cerebral arteries in the skull are also susceptible to occlusion. Therefore, in such patients, if the plasma albumin level is very low, such as below 20 grams per liter, there is a need for routine use of anticoagulant medications.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
50sec home-news-image

Manifestations of recovery from nephrotic syndrome

In principle, there is no concept of complete recovery for nephrotic syndrome. The condition of nephrotic syndrome can be alleviated and controlled to the greatest extent, but it cannot be completely cured. When the condition is alleviated, the patient's glomerular filtration barrier is repaired, resulting in a reduction in proteinuria and a decrease in urinary foam clinically. Once the patient's urinary protein decreases, the plasma protein concentration will gradually increase. Thus, water moves back from outside to inside the blood vessels, leading to a reduction in edema. These clinical signs all indicate an improvement in the condition of nephrotic syndrome. Of course, to assess the condition, it is still necessary to rely on the patient undergoing a 24-hour quantitative urine protein test.