Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
10691516 | Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology | 2014 | 8 Pages |
Abstract
We analyzed the association between the renal arterial resistive index (RI) and the histologic features of lupus nephritis. All consecutive patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) who required a kidney biopsy were enrolled. The study protocol included ultrasonographic assessment to measure the RI and kidney biopsy (International Society of Nephrology/Renal Pathology Society classification). A RI > 0.7 was considered pathologic. Patients with non-renal SLE and healthy patients were studied as control groups. We enrolled 42 patients with renal SLE, 10 with non-renal SLE and 14 healthy patients: their mean (±standard deviation) RI values were 0.64 ± 0.08, 0.60 ± 0.04 and 0.59 ± 0.01, respectively (p = not significant). RIs > 0.7 were recorded only in patients with renal SLE (5/42, 11.9%). The percentage of patients with a pathologic RI was significantly higher in class IV nephritis in comparison with other classes (p < 0.009). In conclusion, we found a significant correlation between pathologic RI and class IV nephritis, suggesting a role for RI as a severity marker.
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Authors
Fabrizio Conti, Fulvia Ceccarelli, Antonietta Gigante, Biagio Barbano, Carlo Perricone, Laura Massaro, Francesco Martinelli, Francesca Romana Spinelli, Kostantinos Giannakakis, Guido Valesini, Rosario Cianci,