Interstitial nephritis. A brief review.

Interstitial nephritis is a common condition, which in spite of a relatively constant pathologic picture has different etiologic agents and pathogenetic mechanisms. Failure to appreciate this, particularly in the chronic group, has led to considerable confusion and has been largely responsible for the overdiagnosis of chronic pyelonephritis. Although we are still largely ignorant of the causes of interstitial nephritis, it is now possible to define many of them. While experimental studies have not made spectacular contributions to our understanding, an attempt is now being made to develop appropriate models, and we hope these will enable us to still further clarify our understanding of other entities.