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| ==Overview== | | ==Overview== |
| ==Medical Therapy== | | ==Medical Therapy== |
| * Medicines which decrease swelling, lower blood pressure and decrease inflammation by suppressing the immune system. | | * |
| * Patients may need to monitor intake of protein, sodium, and potassium.
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| * Patients with severe disease should restrict their sodium intake to 2 grams per day and limit fluid as well.
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| * Depending on the histology, renal function and degree of [[proteinuria]], patients may require steroid therapy or [[chemotherapy]] regimens such as cyclophosphamide, [[azathioprine]], mycophenolate mofetil or [[cyclosporine]].
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| * [[Dialysis]] to control symtopms of [[kidney failure]]. There are two types of dialysis, [[hemodialysis]] and [[peritoneal dialysis]].
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| The drug therapy for lupus nephritis depends on the severity of the disease.
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| * For mild disease, [[corticosteroid]]s are generally prescribed. More severe disease requires treatment with immunosuppressant agents. The two most commonly used agents are [[mycophenolate mofetil]] and intravenous [[cyclophosphamide]]. One recent study compared these two drugs.<ref name="Ginzler">Ginzler EM, Dooley MA, Aranow C, Kim MY, et al. "Mycophenolate Mofetil or Intravenous Cyclophosphamide for Lupus Nephritis." New England Journal of Medicine. 353:21. 2219-2229. 24 November 2005.</ref>
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| * The authors showed that patients with Class III or IV disease are more likely to benefit from [[mycophenolate mofetil]] as compared to [[cyclophosphamide]]. As a result, mycophenolate mofetil is now considered to be the first-line therapy for this disease.
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| ==References== | | ==References== |