How to Diagnose Minimal Change Disease
2013-09-07 18:45
Minimal Change Disease (MCD) is a kind of primary glomerular disease which does not have much pathological changes in kidney. The clinical manifestation of MCD mainly presents as nephropathy syndrome. It is a kind of disease which is often seen in children, and it is controlled well with steroid hormone. Well then, how to diagnose Minimal Change Disease so that it is controlled early?
There are some tests that patients can take to make sure if they have MCD:
Blood test
The purpose of having blood tests is to check if the patient has hypoproteinemia and hyperlipemia. The amount of serum albumin in Patients with MCD is often below 25g/L, and in some cases it may reach 10g/L. The reason for hypoproteinemia is the rate of protein being compounded in liver is slower than the rate being excreted through urine. The loss of high-density lipoprotein and some unknown substances, along with the decrease of osmotic pressure, can make liver excrete more β protein, which lead to hyperlipemia. Patients with MCD always have hypercholesterolemia, bu hyperlipemia appears only when serum albumin has obvious decrease.
Urine test
Patients with MCD often have urine protein, which is caused by the damage of kidney. Urine protein can also aggravate the high filtration rate of glomeruli and promote its sclerosis. So any measure that can help to reduce urine protein is useful in protecting kidney function.
Renal biopsy
Patients with MCD can have renal biopsy. With light microscope, rare morphological changes can be found, and there may be mild increase of mesangial cells in the repeated cases. In the electron microscope, the foot process of epithelial cells may disappear or mix together.
Aside from the above tests, there are many other tests that may need to be carried out in the diagnosis, such as image tests, ultrasound, and so on. What’s more, the diagnosis also needs doctor’s observation and judgment. So, the best method to know your condition is to consult a doctor, and follow his arrangement. Of course, we are glad to help you if we can. So, if you have any question, you can consult our online experts, we will try to help you solve your problems within 48 hours.
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