Leptospira infection- potential cause of chronic kidney disease of uncertain etiology
Sri Lanka: Exposure to Leptospira infection could be a possible causative factor for acute interstitial nephritis without any known reason (AINu), which may lead to chronic kidney disease of uncertain etiology (CKDu) in Sri Lanka.
"The study's findings, published in the Karger journal Nephron, showed that at least some serovars of Leptospira can lead to CKDu in endemic leptospirosis areas," the researchers wrote. "Leptospirosis is common among agricultural communities, suggesting the association of this infection as a risk factor for CKDu occurrence."
Chronic kidney disease of uncertain etiology is an environmental nephropathy in which etiological factors are not sure. Leptospirosis is a spirochetal infection which is common among agricultural communities. It has been identified as a potential etiology for CKDu beyond environmental nephropathy.
In endemic regions, an increasing number of cases are reported with features indicative of interstitial nephritis without any known reason, with or without background chronic kidney disease, despite CKDu being a chronic kidney disease. Chih-Wei Yang, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan, and colleagues hypothesized that exposure to pathogenic leptospires is one of the causative factors for the occurrence of AINu.
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