THE FUNCTIONAL PATTERN IN PATIENTS WITH RENAL DISEASE

The glomerular filtration rate (GFR), the effective renal plasma flow (ERPF), and the filtration fraction (FF) have been studied in 38 patients with different renal diseases and varying degrees of renal insufficiency. All diagnoses were verified by percutaneous renal biopsy. Eighteen living kidney donors comprised a control material. In 10 patients in terminal uremia no characteristic functional pattern was found. Twelve patients with interstitial nephritis had a significantly increased FF, 9 with the nephrotic syndrome had a significantly decreased FF, whereas 7 with glomerulonephritis without the nephrotic syndrome did not demonstrate FF values different from those found in normals. A good correlation was found between the size of the FF and the concentration of serum albumin. Creatinine clearance overestimated the true GFR in patients with renal disease. The FF was not significantly increased in hypertensive patients.