Spontaneous remission of membranous glomerulonephritis with successful fetal outcome: A case report and literature review

Membranous glomerulonephritis (MGN) represents an immunologically mediated disease characterized by deposition of immune complexes in the glomerular subepithelial space. Persistent proteinuria at diagnosis predicts poor prognosis. Pregnancy with MGN is a risk of fetal loss and may worsen maternal renal function. Here, we report a lady with MGN and proteinuria achieved spontaneous remission and successful fetal outcome naive to any medications. The 26-year old woman had 1-year history of persistent proteinuria (5.5–12.56 g/24 hours) and biopsy-proven MGN. Histopathological characteristics included glomerular basement membrane spikes, subepithelial monoclonal IgG immunofluorescence, and diffuse electron dense deposits. She was sticking to a regular morning exercise routine without any medications. After successful delivery of a full-term baby girl, the mother had improved proteinuria (0.56 g/24 hours) and albuminuria (351.96 g/24 hours contrasting 2281.6 g/24 hours before pregnancy). The baby had normal height and body weight at 4 months old. We identified more pregnancies with MGN in 5 case reports and 5 clinical series review articles (7–33 cases included). Spontaneous remission of maternal MGN with good fetal outcome rarely occurred in mothers on immunosuppressive therapy. Mothers naive to immunosuppressive therapy may achieve spontaneous remission of maternal membranous glomerulonephritis and successful fetal outcome. Theoretically, fetus might donate stem cells to heal mother's kidney.