NDT Perspectives Thrombotic microangiopathy and associated renal disorders*

*The results presented in this paper have not been published previously in whole or part. Thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) is a pathological process involving thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic hae-molytic anaemia and microvascular occlusion. TMA is common to haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS) associated with shiga toxin or invasive pneumococcal infection, atypical HUS (aHUS), thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) and other disorders including malignant hypertension. HUS complicating infection with shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is a significant cause of acute renal failure in children worldwide, occurring sporadically or in epidemics. Studies in aHUS have revealed genetic and ac-quired factors leading to dysregulation of the alternative complement pathway. TTP has been linked to reduce