What Is IgA Nephropathy?

[dropcap]I gA nephropathy, also called Berger’s disease, is a primary renal disease that results when immunoglobulin A (IgA) forms deposits in the glomeruli, where it creates inflammation.

IgA nephropathy is characterized by recurrent hematuria (blood in urine), mild proteinuria (protein in urine), and glomerular changes,¹ but it is often a silent disease that may go undetected for many years.²

IgA is an antibody that helps the body fight infections.  As IgA builds up inside the small blood vessels of the kidney, glomeruli become inflamed and damaged.³

Q: What are glomeruli?

A: Glomeruli are the tiny units within the kidney where blood is cleaned. Blood enters the kidneys through arteries that branch inside the kidneys into tiny clusters of looping blood vessels. Each cluster is called a glomerulus, which comes from the Greek word meaning filter. The plural form of the word is glomeruli.

There are approximately 1 million glomeruli, or filters, in each kidney. The glomerulus is attached to the opening of a small fluid-collecting tube called a tubule. Blood is filtered in the glomerulus, and extra water and wastes pass into the tubule and become urine. Eventually, the urine drains from the kidneys into the bladder through larger tubes called ureters.⁴

IgA nephropathy can appear suddenly (acute glomerulonephritis) or get worse slowly over many years (chronic glomerulonephritis). Kidney disease impairs vitamin D activation in the body, resulting in bone loss.³

What Is IgA Nephropathy In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

Sources:

1. Ots M, Uibo O, Metskula K, Uibo R, Salupere V. IgA-antigliadin in patients with IgA nephropathy: the secondary phenomenon? American Journal of Nephrology. 1999; Vol. 19 (4), pp. 453-8. [↩]
2. http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pubs/glomerular/ [↩]
3. National Library of Medicine [↩] [↩]
4. http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pubs/glomerular/ [↩]

What Is Short Duration Of Breast Feeding?

[dropcap]S hort duration of breast feeding, or lactation, is characterized by inadequate milk production by a mother who has just given birth.

Normally, lactation begins with the production and release of colostrum from the mammary glands during the first few days after birth until the milk comes in. Colostrum is a yellow colored, nutrient rich fluid, high in calories and containing immunoglobulins to protect the baby from infection.

Lactation depends on adequate secretion of prolactin hormone by the pituitary gland which begins after the rapid decrease of estrogen and progesterone from the ovaries that occurs with childbirth. Prolactin secretion is afterward stimulated by sucking of the infant and continues as long as the infant nurses.

Milk production to meet the needs of the infant depends on adequate nutrition on the part of the mother.

What Is Short Duration Of Breast Feeding In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

What Is Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)?

[dropcap]A ttention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) is a maladaptive behavioral disorder characterized by a persistent pattern of inattention and impulsivity, or both, that are developmentally (age) inappropriate. For these problems to be diagnosed as ADHD, they must be out of the normal range for a child’s age and development.

Inattention results from difficulty concentrating which gives the impression of not listening. The person’s speech or writing, such as when telling stories, can be disorganized.

Most children with ADHD also have at least one other developmental or behavioral problem. Depression, lack of sleep, learning disabilities, tic disorders, and behavior problems may be confused with, or appear with, ADHD. Every child suspected of having ADHD should be carefully examined by a doctor to rule out possible other conditions or reasons for the behavior.

An MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) study investigating whole-brain cortical thickness (outer layer of the brain) in male and female children, adolescents, and adults with ADHD supports the hypothesis that brain abnormalities in ADHD represent abnormal brain development rather than developmental delay.

Q: What is the abnormal development problem?

A: Differences occur in the right side of the brain only. Reduced cortical thickness in people of all ages with ADHD was observed predominantly in the frontoparietal region (forehead and top). However, increased cortical thickness was observed predominantly in the occipital lobe (back). The brain thickness differences were correlated with severity of ADHD.¹

ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder of childhood. It affects about 3 – 5% of school aged children and is diagnosed much more often in boys than in girls.²

What Is ADHD In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

Sources:

1. Almeida Montes LG, Prado Alcántara H, Martínez García RB, De La Torre LB, Avila Acosta D, Duarte MG. Brain cortical thickness in ADHD: age, sex, and clinical correlations. J Atten Disord. 2013 Nov;17(8):641-54. doi: 10.1177/1087054711434351. [↩]
2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002518/ [↩]

An operation that attaches the colon to an opening in the abdomen called a stoma. An ostomy pouch, attached to the stoma and worn outside the body, collects stool. A temporary colostomy may be created… 

The part of the colon where stool is stored. It is usually located on the left side of the abdomen.

Upper abdominal discomfort, often provoked by eating, that may be accompanied by fullness, bloating, nausea, or other gastrointestinal symptoms. Also called indigestion.

An ostomy, or opening, into the intestines through the abdominal wall.

A condition that occurs when a child grows at a slower than-normal rate.

A buildup of galactose in the blood caused by the lack of one of the enzymes needed to break down galactose.

The field of medicine focusing on the function and disorders of the digestive system.