Pathology Flashcards
What are the 3 types of nephropathy in persons with hyperuricemic disorders?
- Acute uric acid nephropathy
- Chronic urate nephropathy (gouty nephropathy)
- Nephrolithiasis
What kind of crystal precipitate and where in acute uric acid nephropathy?
Uric acid crystals in renal tubules (collecting ducts)
*These can be seen on biopsy as bifiringent crystals that glow
WHat can the precipitation of uric acid crystals in acute uric acid nephropathy lead to?
Obstruction of nephrons and the development of acute renal failure
What patietns are more likely to get acute uric acid nephropathy?
People with leukemia or lymphoma undergoing chemo
-Chemo increases death of tumor cells and uric acid is produced as released nucleic acids are broken down
What kind of crystals are deposited in chronic urate nephropathy and where?
Monosodium urate crystals in distal tubules, collecting ducts and intersitium
What are chronic urate nephropathy crysals like?
They are variably birefringent (long and straight) needle-like crystals in the tubular lumens or interstitium (need to polarize them to see them)
What is a tophus and when do you see this?
- Foreign-body giant cells, other mononuclear cells and a fibrotic reaction (contain foreign elements to wall them off)
- Chronic urate nephropathy
What does tubular obstruction by urates cause?
Cortical atrophy and scarring
What % of individuals with gout have uric acid stones?
22%
What % of individuals with secondary hyperuricemia have uric acid stones?
42%
What disorders are associated with hypercalcemia?
- Hyperparathyroidism
- Multiple myeloma
- Vitamin D intoxication
- Metastatic cancer
- Excess calcium intake (milk-alkali syndrome) -Induce formation of calcium stones and deposition in the kidney
In hypercalcemia and nephrocalcinossi what is the earliest damage?
- Tubular epithelial cells: Mitochondrial distortion and other signs of cell injury (reverisible then irreversible)
- Calcium deposits: Mitochondria, cytoplasm, and basement membrane (purple, amorhpous)
- Calcified cellular debris: Obstruct tubular lumens (get actual stone formation), Obstructive atrophy of nephrons, secondary interstitial fibrosis, and inflammation (due to blockage)
What is the earliest functional defect in hypercalcemia and nephrocalcinosis?
Inability to concentrate the urine (this can be seen with many things though)
What are other tubular defects seen in hypercalcemia and nephrocalcinosis?
Tubular acidosis and salt-losing nephritis
What can further damage lead to in hypercalcemia and nephrocalcinosis?
Slowly progressive renal insufficiency (secondary to neprocalcinosis) if not taken care of
What do you see in acute phoshpate nephropathy?
Extensive accumulations of calcium phosphate crystals in tubules
What can cause acute phosphate nephropathy?
High doses of oral phosphate solutions in preparation for colonoscopy…patients aren’t hypercalcemic!!!
-This can crystalize without increase Ca levels, especially if there is poor renal function
What does acute phosphate nephropathy do?
Presents as renal insufficiency several weeks after exposure (renal function only partially recovers)
What is another name for light chain cast nephropathy?
Myeloma kidney
What is seen in light chain cast nephropathy?
Overt renal insufficiency
Who do you see light chain cast nephropathy in?
Half of those with multiple myeloma and related lymphoplasmacytic disorders
What are 4 contributing factors to renal damage in light- chain nepropathy?
- Bence Jones (light-chain) proteinuria and cast nephropathy
- Amyloidosis, of AL type formed from free light chains
- Light-chain deposition disease
- Hypercalcemia and hyperuricenia
Why do Bence Jones (light-chain) proteins contribute to renal damage in light chain nepropathy?
They are directly toxic to epithelial cells and combine with the urinary glycoprotein (Tamm-Horsfall protein) under acidic conditions forming large, histologically distinct tubular casts that obstruct the tubular lumens and induce a characteristic imflammatory reaction around the casts –> Light-chain cast nephropathy
What can be done to see Bence Jones (light-chain) proteinuria and cast nephropathy?
Serum or urine** electrophoresis
What is light-chain deposition disease
- Deposition of light chains (usually kappa) in GBMs and mesangium (glomerupathy)
- Tubular BM (tubulointerstitial nephritis)
Describe Bence-Jones Tubular Casts
- Pink to blue amorphous masses: Concentrically laminated, Fill and distend the tubular lumens
- No nuclei
- Surrounded by multinucleate giant cells
- Nonspecific inflammatory response and fibrosis: Adjacent interstitial tissue
What does obstruction increase the susceptibility to?
Infection and stone formation
What can unrelieved obstruction lead to?
Permanent renal atrophy… hydronephrosis (kidney swells) or obstructive uropathy (NEED TO DEAL WITH THIS)
How can unrelieved obstructions be death with?
Surgery (stents, lithotripsy, antibiotics) or medically treatable
What is hydronephrosis?
Dilation of the renal pelvis and calyces associated with progressive atrophy of the kidney due to obstruction to the outflow of urine
In complete obstruction does glomerular filtration continue?
Yes, filtrate subsequently diffuses back into the renal interstitium and perirenal spaces ultimately returning to the lympthatic and venous systems… the affected calyces and pelvis become dilated
What are the initial functional alterations in the tubule in hydronephrosis?
Impaired concentrating ability (GFR falls later)
What 3 things are seen with sudden and complete obstruction?
- Glomerular filtration is reduced
- Mild dilation of the pelvis and calyces
- Atrophy of the renal parenchyma (not frequent–> tissue will still function…it won’t die off)
What 2 things are seen with subtotal or intermittent obstruction?
- Glomerular filtration is not suppressed (no total blockage…stuff is still getting out)
- Progressive dilation ensues
What is the morphology of the kidneys in hydronephrosis?
They are slightly to massively enlarged (dilated) and this depends on the degree and duration of the obstruction (how long and where it is)
What are early features seen in the kidney during hydronephrosis?
- Simple dilation of the pelvis and calyces
- Significant intersitial inflammation
What is seen in chronic cases of hydronephrosis?
- Cortical tubular atrophy
- Marked diffuse interstitial fibrosis (due to irritation and inflammation)
- Progressive blunting of the apices of the pyramids
What happens to the kidneys in advanced cases of hydronephrosis?
- The kidney becomes a thin-walled cystic structure with a diameter of up to 15-20cm
- There is parenchymal atrophy, total obliteration of the pyramids, and thinning of the cortex (it reduces to nothing)
Are men or women more commonly affected by urolithiasis?
Men
What is he peak age of onset for urolithiasis?
20-30 years
Is there a familial and hereditary predisposition to stone formation?
Yes
What are examples of hereditary disease that can lead to excessive production and excretion of stone-forming substances?
Inborn errors of metabolism: Gout, cystinuria, and primary hyperoxaluria
What is primary hyperoxaluria?
The liver makes calcium oxalate so there is lots of stone production (this requires a liver and kidney transplant
What are the 4 main types of calculi?
- Calcium stones (70%)
- Triple stones or struvite stones (15%)
- Uric acid stones (5%-10%)
- Cystine stones (1%-2%)
What is the most important determinant of stone formation?
Increased urinary concentration of the stones’ constituents…this exceeds their solubility (supersaturation)
What else can favor supersaturation in some metabolically normal patients?
Low urine volume
What are calcium stones make of?
Calcium oxalate or calcium oxalate mixed with calcium phosphate
Are calcium stones radiopaque?
Yes
What % of patients with calcium stones have hypercalcemia and hypercalciuria?
5%
What conditions are associated with hypercalcemia and hypercalciuria?
- Hyperparathyroidism
- Diffuse bone disease
- Sarcoidosis
What % of patients with calcium stones have hypercalciuria without hypercalcemia?
55%
WHat things can cause hypercalciuria without hypercalcemia?
- Hyperabsorption of calcium from intestine (absorptive hypercalciuria)
- Intrinsic impairment in renal tubular reabsorption of calcium (renal hypercalciuria)
- Idiopathic fasting hypercalciuria with normal parathyroid function
What are triple stones also called?
Struvite stones
What are triple stones made of?
Magnesium ammonium phosphate
What are the largest triple stones called and where are they found?
Staghorn calculi and they occupy the large portions of the renal pelvis
What are triple stones caused by?
Bacteria: Proteus and some staphlyococci
-They convert urea to ammonia and the resultant alkaline urine causes the precipitation
What 2 conditions are uric acid stones common in?
Hyperuricemia (gout) and diseases with rapid cell turnover (leukemias)
What will more than 50% of patients with uric acid stones have?
Neither hyperuricemia nor increased urinary excretion of uric acid
Are uric acid stones radiopaque?
No, they are radiolucent
What are cystine stones from?
Cystinuria:
- Inherited genetic disorder of the transport of an AA
- Excess cystine in the urine (cystinuria) and the formation of cystine stones
Where are casts found?
In the urinary sediment (need to look at them under a microscope)
What can casts do?
Localize disease to a specific location in the GU tract (the can’t diagnose anything themselves, but can be combined with other clinical clues for diagnosis)
What are casts?
Coagulum of Tamm-Horsfall mucoprotein and the trapped contents with the tubular lumen
Where do casts originate from?
The DCT or collecting ducts
When do casts form?
In periods of urinary concentration or stasis or when the urine pH is very low
What does the cylindrical shape of the cast reflect?
The tubule in which they were formed
What are some prominent cellular elements that determine the type of cast?
Hyaline, erythrocyte, leukocyte, epithelial, granular, waxy, fatty, broad
What are hyaline casts made of?
Mucoprotein (Tamm-Horsfall protein) secreted by tubule cells
Where are hyaline casts formed?
The collecting duct
What produces a RBC cast?
Glomerular inflammation with leakage of RBCs (usually extravasation of RBC in glomerular area)
*RBC casts are formed in the distal convoluted tubule
What are WBC casts most typical for?
Acute pyelonephritis*
-Can also be seen in glomerulonephritis or with inflammation of the kidney
Where are cellular casts from?
Within the nepron
How might a waxy cast be ultimately formed?
Before being flushed into the bladder urine, cells may degenerate to become a coarsely granular cast, later a finely granular cast, and ultimately, a waxy cast
Where do granular and waxy casts arise from?
Renal tubular cell casts
What lines the renal pelvis, ureters, bladder, and urethra?
A special form of transitional epithelium (urothelium)
Describe the surface layer of the renal pelvis, ureters, bladder, and urethra?
Large, flattened “umbrella cells” with abundant cytoplasm that horizontally covers several underlying cells