Childhood Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome: A Single-Center Hospital Study

Introduction: Idiopathic nephrotic syndrome (INS) is one of the leading causes of childhood morbidity worldwide. This study was undertaken to complete the epidemiological, clinical, therapeutic and evolutionary aspects of NIS in hospitalized patients. Methodology: We conducted a retrospective study of patients with childhood NIS who had been admitted to our department from January 2017 to December 2018. Diagnosis, remission and relapse of idiopathic NS were defined according to the recommendations of the French Society of Pediatric Nephrology. We included all patients aged 2 to 14 years presenting a NIS picture. Results: During the study period, 35 patients with idiopathic NS had been hospitalized, representing a frequency of 1% of patients hospitalized in the department. The sex ratio was 2.22. The average age of the patients was 7.5 ± 3.5 years. Generalized edema was observed in all our patients. Arterial hypertension (36%) and abdominal pain (24%), hematuria (9%) were the main associated signs. Malnutrition was present in 66%, urinary tract infection in 20% and malaria in 24%. Cortico-sensitivity was obtained in 86% of patients, 14% were cortico-resistant and 11% were cortico-dependent. Relapses (6%) had been observed among cortico-sensitive patients. The mortality rate was 11%. Conclusion: This study calls for more trials to better elucidate prognostic indicators and develop better therapeutic approaches adapted to epidemio-clinical contexts.