Interstitial nephritis

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Male urinary system

Overview

Symptoms

Treatment

Prevention

Interstitial nephritis

Alternative Names:

Tubulointerstitial nephritis; Nephritis - interstitial; Acute interstitial (allergic) nephritis

Treatment:

Treatment focuses on treating underlying causes and relieving symptoms. Avoiding the suspect medications may cause the symptoms to go away quickly.

Dietary restriction of sodium (salt) and fluid may control swelling and hypertension. Dietary restriction of protein may be needed to control azotemia (accumulation of nitrogenous waste products in the blood) associated with acute renal failure.

If dialysis is necessary, it usually is required for only a short time.

Corticosteroids or anti-inflammatory medications may be of benefit in some cases.

Expectations (prognosis):

Most often, interstitial nephritis is an acute but short-term disorder. On rare occasions it may cause permanent damage including chronic renal failure.

Complications:

Calling your health care provider:

Call your health care provider if symptoms indicate interstitial nephritis may be present.

If you have interstitial nephritis, call if new symptoms develop, especially decreased alertness or decrease in urine output.

Review Date: 9/13/2005
Reviewed By: Robert Mushnick, M.D., Clinical Assistant Professor, SUNY Downstate Health Center, Brooklyn, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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