Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Add like
Add dislike
Add to saved papers

Bedside Stereomicroscopy of Fabry Kidney Biopsies: An Easily Available Method for Diagnosis and Assessment of Sphingolipid Deposits.

Nephron 2018
BACKGROUND/AIMS: A previous case report found stereomicroscopic changes typical for Fabry disease in a kidney biopsy. This case series evaluates an expanded diagnostic capacity of the method.

METHODS: Bedside stereomicroscopy was performed in a cross-sectional prospective study of 31 consecutive enzyme-treated or treatment-naïve male (n = 14) and female Fabry disease patients. The burden of glomerular storage material was scored semiquantitatively on a visual analog scale (range 0-3) and a blinded comparison was done with a reference histologic method.

RESULTS: Significant correlations (p < 0.001) were found between the stereomicroscopic scoring of glomerular characteristic white storage material and the amount of podocyte globotriaosylceramide (Gb3) deposits scored by standardized light microscopy. The bedside method correctly identified the variability of podocyte Gb3 accumulation after 10 years of identical agalsidase therapy in 2 brothers aged 24 and 27 years, and also identified tubular cell deposits. Stereomicroscopy correctly verified the absence of sphingolipid deposits in the biopsy of a female index patient with a genetic variant of unknown significance, and the diagnosis of Fabry disease was finally discarded.

CONCLUSIONS: Bedside stereomicroscopy of kidney biopsies is an easily available, low-cost microscopy method handled by the clinician. The method carries a high diagnostic sensitivity for Fabry disease, reducing the risk of misdiagnosis in previously unknown cases. An expanded yield of the method is suggested, including the grading of the podocyte Gb3 burden and assessment of effectiveness of enzyme replacement therapy. We recommend the method as complementary to current standard histologic evaluation of Fabry kidney biopsies.

Full text links

We have located links that may give you full text access.
Can't access the paper?
Try logging in through your university/institutional subscription. For a smoother one-click institutional access experience, please use our mobile app.

Related Resources

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app

Mobile app image

Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app

All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2024 by WebMD LLC.
This website also contains material copyrighted by 3rd parties.

By using this service, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.

Your Privacy Choices Toggle icon

You can now claim free CME credits for this literature searchClaim now

Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app