Hypertensive nephropathy

Hypertensive nephropathy
Micrograph showing renal arterial hyalinosis - pink ring right-of-centre. PAS stain.
Classification and external resources
Specialty
ICD-10	I12
ICD-9-CM	403
Patient UK	Hypertensive nephropathy

Hypertensive nephropathy (or "hypertensive nephrosclerosis", or "Hypertensive kidney disease") is a medical condition referring to damage to the kidney due to chronic high blood pressure. It should be distinguished from "renovascular hypertension" (I15.0), which is a form of secondary hypertension.

In the kidneys, as a result of benign arterial hypertension, hyaline (pink, amorphous, homogeneous material) accumulates in the wall of small arteries and arterioles, producing the thickening of their walls and the narrowing of the lumina — arteriolosclerosis. Consequent ischemia will produce tubular atrophy, interstitial fibrosis, glomerular alterations (smaller glomeruli with different degrees of hyalinization - from mild to sclerosis of glomeruli) and periglomerular fibrosis. In advanced stages, kidney failure will occur. Functional nephrons have dilated tubules, often with hyaline casts in the lumens. Additional complications often associated with hypertensive nephropathy include glomerular damage resulting in protein and blood in the urine.

See also

• Nephropathy

External links

• Photo at Atlas of Pathology