Clinical studies of renal disorders in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract

Renal disorders were noted in 25 out of 276 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The renal disorders were clinically divided into two groups; one was characterized by persistent proteinuria (_??_ 0.5 g/day) and the other by hematuria. Frequency of proteinuria was 32.0% and hematuria 76.0%. Accordingly hematuria was considered to be the common renal disorder in RA patients.
Although it has been reported that secondary amyloidosis in RA patients tends to develop in long-standing RA with more active disease, matched controlled study failed to confirm such conclusion.
Discontinuation or change of NSAIDs and/or DMARDs in half of RA patients with hematuria cleared their urinary findings, suggesting that drugs were causative agents for hematuria.
Life table analysis disclosed that RA patients with renal disorders had poor prognosis.