Membranous Nephropathy in the Dog

Abstract

Membranous nephropathy, a disease syndrome characterized by severe proteinuria and often accompanied by the nephrotic syndrome, was identified in 29% of a population of 46 proteinuric dogs. Renal lesions were characterized by the presence of subepithelial immunoglobulin deposits distributed diffusely along the glomerular capillary wall. Advanced stages were associated with progressive thickening of capillary basement membranes and incorporation of the immune deposits. These changes were followed by either glomerulosclerosis or recovery. Characteristic morphologic stages were correlated with clinical pathologic findings which showed that the level of proteinuria, hypoalbuminemia, and consequent nephrotic syndrome was most severe in the initial stages of membranous nephropathy while the level of azotemia increased in the more advanced stages of the syndrome.

Prevalence of Immune‐Complex Glomerulonephritides in Dogs Biopsied for Suspected Glomerular Disease: 501 Cases (2007–2012)

“…Glomerulosclerosis was the most common non‐IC glomerulopathy found in this cohort of dogs (20.6%). It was even more common than amyloidosis (15.2%), which has been reported to be the second most common cause of glomerular disease in some studies of dogs . Interestingly, GS is the only category in which a substantial sex bias was identified, as females were significantly over‐represented (74/103, 71.8%) by a margin of nearly 3 to 1.…”

“…It was even more common than amyloidosis (15.2%), which has been reported to be the second most common cause of glomerular disease in some studies of dogs. 13,25,26 Interestingly, GS is the only category in which a substantial sex bias was identified, as females were significantly over-represented (74/103, 71.8%) by a margin of nearly 3 to 1. Because the histories typically only included data on recent clinical findings, possible causes of this sex bias could not be ascertained.…”

“…There are no large‐scale studies defining the prevalence of ICGN in dogs with clinical evidence of glomerular disease for which renal specimens were evaluated by LM, IF, and TEM in all cases. Prior studies have examined smaller cohorts and either drew from cases with a previous diagnosis of glomerulonephritis, did not exclude known lower urinary tract diseases, examined dogs with histories of chronic disease that were euthanized, or sampled dogs submitted for euthanasia without histories . When modalities other than hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) were used for evaluation, not all cases were examined, only known GN cases were examined, or TEM was performed only on formalin‐fixed and paraffin‐embedded tissue (which may result in more artifacts).…”

Naturally‐occurring chronic renal disease in Australian cats: a prospective study of 184 cases

“…16 Decreasing proteinuria with renal disease progression to renal failure has also been described in dogs with membranous glomerulonephropathy. 17 However, levels of proteinuria have been reported to increase as renal function decreased over time in cats. 18 These contrasting results may reflect limitations of UP:Cs as renal failure worsens or species or disease differences and warrant further investigation.…”

Comparison of Signalment, Clinicopathologic Findings, Histologic Diagnosis, and Prognosis in Dogs with Glomerular Disease with or without Nephrotic Syndrome

“…2,10 NS is well-recognized in dogs. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22] However, the relationship between NS and signalment, type of glomerular disease, severity of proteinuria, hypoalbuminemia, and development of complications is unknown. Amyloidosis, membranous nephropathy, and minimal change disease may be more likely to result in NS because of greater urinary albumin loss than other glomerulopathies.…”