Value of beta 1C/1A globulin serum levels as an early index of glomerular involvement in Schistosoma mansoni infection.

In attempting the early detection of glomerular abnormalities in patients with the hepatosplenic form of Schistosoma mansoni infection, the serum concentration of beta 1C/1A globulin was determined in 17 patients without clinical evidence of nephropathy. Renal biopsies were obtained during splenectomy in all of them. The serum levels of beta 1C/1A globulin were below the normal limit in eight patients; of these, two had histological evidence of focal proliferative glomerulonephritis, two others had membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis, and one showed focal sclerosing glomerulonephritis. Of nine patients with normal serum levels of beta 1C/1A globulin, eight had no glomerular abnormalities demonstrated by light microscopy. Determination of the serum concentration of beta 1C/1A globulin proved to be a valuable index for the detection of early glomerulopathy in patients with hepatosplenic schistosomiasis, since a low level correlated well with the histologic demonstration of glomerular involvement by light microscopy.