The effectiveness and safety of full-dose versus half-dose corticosteroid plus renin-angiotensin system blockers for IgA nephropathy

BACKGROUND: Observational studies suggest that patients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN) showed good responses to corticosteroids (CS) but experienced severe adverse effects. The authors conducted a cohort study to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of half-dose CS plus renin-angiotensin system blockers (RASB) (CS + RASB) versus full-dose CS in IgAN patients. METHODS: A total of 162 kidney biopsy-confirmed IgAN patients with protein excretion levels ⩾0.75 g/d and an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) >30 ml/min/1.73 m(2) were included. A total of 89 patients received half-dose CS + RASB (half CS + RASB), and 73 patients received full-dose CS (full CS). The primary outcomes were the complete remission rates and incidence of adverse events (AEs). The secondary outcomes included 24 h urinary protein (UP) levels and a combined event. RESULTS: Over the 18 months follow-up, the complete remission rates were 59% (53/89 patients) and 57% (42/73 patients) in the half CS + RASB and full CS groups (p = 0.88), respectively. A total of five patients suffered from serious AEs (SAEs) in the full CS group during the observation period, and no SAEs were observed in the half CS + RASB group (p = 0.012). The incidences of total AEs (p = 0.003) and infections (p = 0.01) were lower in the half CS + RASB group than in the full CS group. CONCLUSIONS: Although half CS + RASB versus full CS did not differ in terms of reducing proteinuria, therapy with half CS + RASB resulted in fewer AEs in the IgAN patients.