Original Article Histological differences in newly onset IgA nephropathy between children and adults

Background. It is suggested that IgA nephropathy (IgAN) manifests differently in children vs adults on the basis of biopsy findings. However, this has been difficult to establish owing to the uncertainty of the timing of disease onset in adult IgAN. We addressed this question by comparing both histology and leucocyte accumulation in biopsies of recently diag-nosed childhood and adult IgAN. Methods. Biopsies taken within 2 years from the onset of renal abnormalities in 33 childhood (10 3 years of age) and 38 adult (35 6 years) cases of IgAN were examined for histological changes (cellularity in mesangial, endocapillary and extracapillary areas, matrix expansion, adhesions/crescents and interstitia