Complications

Glomerulonephritis can damage your kidneys so that they lose their filtering ability. As a result, dangerous levels of fluid, electrolytes and waste build up in your body.

Possible complications of glomerulonephritis include:

• Acute kidney failure. Loss of function in the filtering part of the nephron can result in rapid accumulation of waste products. You might need emergency dialysis — an artificial means of removing extra fluids and waste from your blood — typically by an artificial kidney machine.
• Chronic kidney disease. Your kidneys gradually lose their filtering ability. Kidney function that deteriorates to less than 10 percent of normal capacity results in end-stage kidney disease, which requires dialysis or a kidney transplant to sustain life.
• High blood pressure. Damage to your kidneys and the resulting buildup of wastes in the bloodstream can raise your blood pressure.
• Nephrotic syndrome. With this syndrome, too much protein in your urine results in too little protein in your blood. Nephrotic syndrome can be associated with high blood cholesterol and swelling (edema) of the eyelids, feet and abdomen.