A Case of Nephrotic Syndrome Presenting With Pulmonary Embolus in a Kidney Transplant Patient

Recurrence of glomerulonephritis (GN) is considered an important cause of allograft failure in kidney transplant recipients. It can present after transplantation with complications that are difficult to manage. In this case report, a 53-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital with abdominal pain and swelling in the right lower quadrant during the first month after kidney transplant. Following hospitalization, she complained of sudden-onset dyspnea and chest pain. Thorax computed tomography examination revealed pulmonary embolism (PE); thus, anticoagulation therapy was started. Her 24-h urine proteinuria was quantified as 16695 mg/day, and due to low albumin levels, she was diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome. However, kidney biopsy could not be performed due to the bleeding tendency of the patient. Due to a probable diagnosis of recurrent focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, plasmapheresis was performed. A total of eight plasmapheresis resulted in a complete recovery of the patient considering her proteinuria. In conclusion, recurrence of GN and development of PE due to nephrotic syndrome are well known, but difficult-to-manage. Thus, nephrology follow-up after kidney transplant is crucial.

Cite this article as: Korkmaz M, Kaya E, Karakoç A, Trabulus S, Pekmezci S, Seyahi N. A Case of Nephrotic Syndrome Presenting With Pulmonary Embolus in a Kidney Transplant Patient. Turk J Nephrol 2019; 28(3): 236-8.