A system of practical medicine. By American authors. Vol. 4

by Unknown

Pathological albuminuria is most constant and the albumen is most abundant with acute and chronic parenchymatous nephritis, with acute diffuse nephritis, and with the large white variety of chronic diffuse nephritis. It is least constant and least abundant with the atrophic variety of chronic diffuse nephritis, with some waxy kidneys, with interstitial nephritis, and with chronic congestion of the kidney. A variety of explanations have been given to account for the production of albumen by diseased kidneys, but none of them are very satisfactory.

The albuminuria has been ascribed to disease of the epithelium of the Malpighian bodies; to increase of the blood-pressure within the renal arteries, either with or without disease of the arterial walls; to slowing of the blood-current in the arteries; to diminution of the blood-pressure in the arteries; to congestion of the renal veins; to changes in the composition of the blood; to changes in the epithelium of the renal tubules.

For practical purposes it is to be remembered that large amounts of albumen regularly indicate structural changes in the kidneys; that small amounts of albumen are found without any kidney lesions, with chronic congestion of the kidney, and with chronic diffuse nephritis; that chronic diffuse nephritis may exist without albuminuria for a long time.

In many cases of kidney disease we find in the urine bodies of cylindrical shape called casts. The same bodies are also found within the tubules of diseased kidneys. Concerning the nature and origin of these bodies we are still ignorant. We only know that they are formed within the kidney tubules and are carried thence into the urine. With the exception of the blood-casts, which are composed simply of a number of blood-globules pressed together, all casts seem to be formed of a peculiar homogeneous hyaline substance to which other elements may be added. Hyaline casts are composed entirely of such material. Waxy casts are formed of the same substance, which becomes denser. Epithelial casts are made by the adhesion of epithelial cells to the surface of hyaline casts. Nucleated, granular, and fatty casts are hyaline casts with the fragments of degenerated epithelium incorporated in them.

Occasionally hyaline casts are found in the urine of healthy persons. They also occur as a temporary condition after severe muscular exertion, with typhlitis, with renal calculi, and with jaundice. Most frequently, however, they are associated with structural disease of the kidneys. Usually they are found in albuminous urine, and in proportion to the amount of albumen, but we may find casts without albumen and albumen without casts.

With chronic congestion of the kidney the casts are hyaline and few in number. With acute parenchymatous nephritis there are hyaline, granular, nucleated, and epithelial casts. With chronic parenchymatous nephritis there are hyaline, granular, and nucleated casts. With acute diffuse nephritis there are blood, epithelial, hyaline, granular, nucleated, and fatty casts. With chronic diffuse nephritis there are hyaline, waxy, granular, fatty, nucleated, and epithelial casts.

An accumulation of serum in the subcutaneous connective tissue, in the serous cavities, and in the lungs is one of the regular symptoms of Bright's disease. It usually appears first in the feet or in the face. Such dropsy is said to be due to a low specific gravity of the blood-serum; to the loss of albumen; to the scanty elimination of urine; to hydræmia plethora; or to changes in the walls of the blood-vessels.

The functions of the stomach are often disordered, either with or without the existence of chronic gastritis. Loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, oppression after eating, etc. continue and grow worse throughout the disease. Vomiting is also a frequent concomitant of the so-called uræmic attacks.

Diarrhoea often occurs with dropsy and a scanty excretion of urine, and may then be of service to the patient, but it sometimes becomes very profuse, rebellious to treatment, and is of positive injury.

Dyspnoea associated with Bright's disease seems to occur in several different ways. It may be of mechanical origin from oedema of the lungs or from hydrothorax. It may be a purely nervous phenomenon, or it may depend upon a complicating heart lesion. The nervous dyspnoea seems to be allied to the uræmic vomiting and cerebral symptoms; it is often most distressing.