Impact of Obesity on Childhood Kidney

Obese patients are known to have greater risks to develop hypertension, coronary vascular disease, and insulin resistance, and more attention has been recently paid to the impact of obesity on kidney. This study was conducted to investigate whether obese children have higher risk of renal injury as well as adults. Eighteen hundred and thirty school children aged 6-14 years with abnormal urinary findings on thrice occasions detected by the screening program for renal disease in Japan were enrolled. Of them, 27 children with nephritis or suspected nephritis diagnosed by persistent proteinuria with hematuria were compared to 588 without urinary abnormalities regarding their body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (BP), and serum level of total cholesterol. BMI and systolic BP (mmHg) were significantly higher in the former than in the latter. As a result, obesity may be associated with the development of renal injury even in childhood.