ABSTRACT
Acute glomerulonephritis is a well-described complication of streptococcal and other infections in children. e narrative of hematuria and edema (dropsy) following scarlet fever provided a clinical description of acute glomerulonephritis, and for over a century this condition was known as the Bright disease.1 It is likely, however, that many of the patients with Bright disease actually had some form of chronic glomerulonephritis. e term acute postinfectious glomerulonephritis (APIGN) refers to the broad group of acute nephritis that follows a variety of infectious events. APIGN may result from a variety of other bacterial and viral infectious agents, such as staphylococci, pneumococci, Yersinia, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, inuenza virus, adenovirus, coxsackie virus, Epstein-Barr virus, varicella virus, mumps virus, measles virus, and parvovirus B19 (Table 21.1). APIGN can also occur in states of chronic bacterial infections, such as acute endocarditis, ventriculoatrial shunt infections, and deep-seated abscesses.
