Does acute nephritis cause fever?

Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
Updated on April 11, 2025
00:00
00:00

Acute nephritis is actually a sterile inflammation, with significant proliferation of cells within the glomeruli, primarily related to immune dysfunction. Therefore, from this perspective, acute nephritis does not show symptoms of fever. However, due to the inflammatory response within the glomeruli causing acute nephritis, patients may experience renal failure. In the state of renal failure, the patient's immune capability further decreases, which could lead to complications from infections, with respiratory infections being the most common, including pneumonia, bronchitis, and acute tonsillitis. These inflammations may cause fever, but this fever is not a direct result of the acute nephritis itself.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Li Liu Sheng
Nephrology
1min 1sec home-news-image

Acute Nephritis Pathological Characteristics

The pathological features of acute nephritis include enlarged kidneys, and under the light microscope, there is diffuse proliferation of glomeruli, capillary endothelial cells, and mesangial cells. During the acute phase, there can be infiltration of neutrophils and mononuclear cells. In severe cases, constriction or occlusion of the capillary loops occurs, and the renal interstitium has edema and infiltration of inflammatory cells. Under immunofluorescence, there are deposits of IgG and C3 appearing as granular deposits along the glomerular capillary walls and mesangial areas. Under electron microscopy, there are hump-shaped electron-dense deposits beneath the glomerular epithelium. Acute nephritis is commonly seen in children, characterized by a sudden onset and symptoms such as hematuria, increased urinary protein, edema, and elevated blood pressure, even transient renal function decline may occur.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Li Liu Sheng
Nephrology
56sec home-news-image

Early symptoms of acute nephritis

The occurrence of acute nephritis is related to streptococcal infections and is commonly seen in children. Typically, 1-3 weeks before the onset of acute nephritis, patients often have a history of infections in the throat, upper respiratory tract, or skin. Once acute nephritis occurs, the initial symptoms include hematuria, which can manifest as either gross or microscopic hematuria. There is also the appearance of edema, especially noticeable swelling of the eyelids and facial area upon waking up in the morning, and even a decrease in urine output. Additionally, patients with acute nephritis often experience increased foam in the urine, indicating the presence of proteinuria, as well as general weakness, back pain, nausea, and vomiting. After the onset of acute nephritis, some patients may experience elevated blood pressure and even transient renal failure.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
46sec home-news-image

Does acute nephritis cause fever?

Acute nephritis is actually a sterile inflammation, with significant proliferation of cells within the glomeruli, primarily related to immune dysfunction. Therefore, from this perspective, acute nephritis does not show symptoms of fever. However, due to the inflammatory response within the glomeruli causing acute nephritis, patients may experience renal failure. In the state of renal failure, the patient's immune capability further decreases, which could lead to complications from infections, with respiratory infections being the most common, including pneumonia, bronchitis, and acute tonsillitis. These inflammations may cause fever, but this fever is not a direct result of the acute nephritis itself.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
58sec home-news-image

Can people with acute nephritis eat beef?

In the acute phase of nephritis, patients are generally required to have a light diet and minimize their protein intake, with their protein intake level being about 80% of that of a normal person. They should primarily consume animal-based proteins, which should account for more than 50% of their intake. This principle is called a high-quality, low-protein diet. Therefore, overall, patients with acute nephritis can eat beef, as it is considered a high-quality protein. However, the amount ingested needs to be limited. The intake of beef should be calculated based on the patient's body weight, with every 100 grams of beef containing 20 grams of protein. The total daily protein intake for patients should be 0.6 to 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight, including both animal and plant proteins. Patients can use the aforementioned data to calculate how much beef they can eat.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
53sec home-news-image

Principles of Acute Nephritis Treatment

The treatment of acute nephritis mainly involves managing the complications of acute nephritis, because acute nephritis itself can potentially heal automatically. The inflammatory reaction in the glomeruli can naturally subside, and proteinuria can decrease, kidney function can recover. However, acute nephritis may cause some complications that could be life-threatening to the patient. Therefore, treatment should focus on these complications to help the patient overcome difficulties, and then wait for the acute nephritis to heal automatically. Common complications mainly include heart failure, high blood pressure, pulmonary infections, etc. Thus, if a patient experiences heart failure, diuretics or even dialysis may be needed, and if an infection occurs, a full course of antibiotics is necessary for anti-inflammatory treatment.