Patient's question:
My younger sister's little nephew is six years old this year. The child initially showed symptoms of calcium deficiency, later developing a milky appearance in the urine, and had particularly low immunity, frequently suffering from fever and colds. After taking the child to the hospital for examination, the doctor diagnosed it as nephrotic syndrome.Doctor's answer:
The pediatric field has different views on the application of the term "nephrotic syndrome." Pediatric nephrotic syndrome is a clinical condition caused by various factors or etiologies leading to increased glomerular permeability, resulting in a significant loss of protein in the urine. Clinically, it is characterized by the following features: massive proteinuria (qualitative as+++ or more, quantitative as more than 0.1 g/kg/d in children), hypoalbuminemia (serum albumin of 5.20 mmol/L in children), and significant edema, forming a clinical syndrome with these common characteristics. It is evident that nephrotic syndrome is a clinical condition of pediatric nephrosis rather than a disease or issue of nephrotic syndrome used for final diagnosis.