Author(s)

Manaf Aljishi¹, Tony Pham¹, Justin Chan¹, Matthew McGrail², Thin Han^1,2, Jennifer Borg¹, Dwarakanathan Ranganathan^3,4, Zaw Thet^1,2,4

¹Department of Nephrology, Central Queensland Hospital and Health Service, Queensland, Australia.
²The University of Queensland, Rural Clinical School, Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia.
³Department of Nephrology, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Queensland, Australia.
⁴The Griffith University, Queensland, Australia.

Aim: The objectives of this study are to determine the epidemiology of biopsy-proven glomerular disease (GD) in Central Queensland and the effect of a severe cyclone on its incidence and clinical phenotype. Background: Central Queensland (CQ) has a relatively high incidence of kidney disease. Since its biopsy service commenced in 2005, there have been no data on biopsy-proven GD. It has been suggested that GD incidence changes around times of natural disasters. In February 2015, the CQ region was affected by a category 5 Cyclone Marcia. This provides an opportunity to explore possible environmental triggers of GD. Methods: This was a single-centre retrospective observational study on biopsy-proven kidney disease in CQ. All kidney biopsies performed between January 2005 and December 2019 were included. Patients with biopsy-proven GD during 3 years before and after Cyclone Marcia (from 2012 to 2018) were analysed. Results: 170 native kidney biopsies occurred during the 15 years. The number of annual biopsies steadily increased from 7 to 16. The most common biopsy-proven kidney disease was IgA Nephropathy (27%) followed by diabetic nephropathy (20%). GD comprised 64% of biopsies. Unlike other GD, the incidence of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) significantly increased after cyclone (one pre- and eight post-cyclone, P value = 0.039). The majority of AAV cases occurred in the first year after the cyclone. Conclusion: Kidney biopsies in CQ provide important epidemiological data on biopsy-proven kidney disease. Cyclones have a possible effect on the incidence and clinical phenotype of ANCA associated vasculitis.

Anti-Neutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody-Associated Vasculitis, Australia, Cyclonic Storms, Glomerulonephritis, Kidney Biopsy, Queensland

Aljishi, M. , Pham, T. , Chan, J. , McGrail, M. , Han, T. , Borg, J. , Ranganathan, D. and Thet, Z. (2021) Epidemiology of Biopsy Proven Glomerular Disorders and Effect of Severe Cyclone on Its Incidence in Central Queensland Region of Australia. Open Journal of Nephrology, 11, 477-488. doi: 10.4236/ojneph.2021.114040.