a. Glomerulonephritis is an inflammatory disease of the kidneys.

The inflammatory process is thought to be a result of an immune system response. Antigen- antibody reactions form molecule complexes that move through the circulatory system.

Some of these complexes become lodged in the glomeruli, initiating the inflammatory response. The inflammation causes thickening of the glomerular filtration membrane, resulting in scarring and loss of filtering surface. Fibrous tissue forms and the kidney cannot function normally.

b. Repeated occurrences of mild glomerulonephritis may cause damage that goes unchecked for years because the patient is asymptomatic. Even the insidious onset of symptoms may go unnoticed. The condition is often diagnosed during a routine physical exam or eye examination, when the patient may be found to have:

(1) Mild hypertension.

(2) Pedal edema.

(3) Vascular changes or hemorrhages in the eyes.

(4) Abnormal urinalysis.

c. An acute attack may be manifested by:

(1) Scanty amounts of bloody, cloudy, sediment filled urine.

(2) Headache.

(3) Malaise.

(4) Flank pain.

(5) Swollen, congested kidneys.

(6) Edema, facial and extremity.

(7) Increased blood levels of urea and creatinine.

(8) Hypertension.

(9) Pulmonary edema.

(10) Congestive heart failure.

(11) Renal failure.