OUTBREAK OF ACUTE NEPHRITIS IN ADOLESCENT SCHOOLBOYS

Abstract

An outbreak of acute nephritis is reported which occurred among adolescent boys who were students at a private day school. Four boys in one class had clinically typical acute glomerular nephritis. Seventeen other members of this and one other class were found to have hematuria with or without associated albuminuria. The total incidence of hematuria among the 73 students in these two classes was 29%. Fifteen of the 21 boys with hematuria still had abnormally elevated Addis sediment counts approximately seven weeks after the initial examination.

Cultures of the nasopharynx were made from 85 students. Hemolytic streptococci were detected in 11 (13%) of the boys including three with hematuria. The results of attempts to identify the streptococci by serologic technics indicated that at least five immunologically different varieties were represented.

Determinations of antihyaluronidase, antistreptolysin "O" and antistreptokinase in serum from 17 boys with hematuria and 20 without apparent hematuria revealed wide variations in titer but no significant differences between the two groups.