PEDIATRICS Vol. 63 No. 5 May 1979, pp. 782-787
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Vardi, P.
Right arrow Articles by Benderley, A.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Vardi, P.
Right arrow Articles by Benderley, A.

The Heart in Acute Glomerulonephritis: An Echocardiographic Study

Pnina Vardi M.D.1, Walter Markiewicz M.D.1, Joseph Levy M.D.1, Olga Adler M.D.1, Egon Riss M.D.1, and Abraham Benderley M.D.1

1 Department of Pediatrics, Cardiology, and Diagnostic Radiology, Rambam Medieal Center, Aba Khoushy School of Medicine, Haifa, Israel

Patients with acute glomerulonephritis often are seen with signs suggesting heart failure. Whether these signs are due to fluid overload secondary to kidney damage only, or whether there is associated myocardial damage has not been elucidated. Fourteen children with acute glomerulonephritis were studied by echocardiography during the edematous phase of the disease and five months later to evaluate cardiac function in this disease. Left ventricular size and function remained normal in all children throughout the study. The most consistent finding was enlargement of the left atrium during the edematous phase with a return toward normal values five months later. There was no correlation between blood pressure and the echocardiographic findings. This study suggests that signs of heart failure in acute glomerulonephritis are not due to myocardial damage but probably reflect fluid overload.

Submitted on April 7, 1978
Accepted on August 8, 1978