Treatment for glomerulonephritis:

Specific treatment for glomerulonephritis will be determined by your child's physician based on:

• your child's age, overall health, and medical history
• the extent of the disease
• your child's tolerance for specific medications, procedures, or therapies
• expectations for the course of the disease
• your opinion or preference

If glomerulonephritis is caused by a streptococcal infection, then treatment will be focused on curing the infection and treating the symptoms associated with the infection. Unfortunately, glomerulonephritis caused by a different reason cannot be cured. Therefore, treatments focus on slowing the progression of the disease preventing complications.

Treatment for glomerulonephritis may include:

• fluid restriction
  
  
• decreased protein diet
  
  
• decreased salt and potassium diet
  
  
• medication, such as:
  
  
  • diuretics
    
    
  • blood pressure medications
    
    
  • phosphate binders - medications to decrease the amount of the mineral phosphorus in the blood.
    
    
  • immunosuppressive agents
    
    
• dialysis
  Dialysis may be required for short-term or long-term therapy. Dialysis is a medical treatment to remove wastes and additional fluid from the blood after the kidneys have stopped functioning.

If glomerulonephritis does not resolve, long-term kidney failure may need to be addressed.