RAPID RENAL DETERIORATION SECONDARY TO OXALATE IN A PATIENT WITH DIABETIC GASTROENTEROPATHY

We report the case of a white woman with insulin-dependent diabetes fo r 12 years who had rapid deterioration in renal function over a 7-mont h period. A renal biopsy showed widespread deposition of a polarizing crystalline material consistent with calcium oxalate, Fat malabsorptio n due to diabetic diarrhea was first documented 5 years earlier when r enal function was normal. Chronic malabsorption can lead to chronic in terstitial nephritis secondary to oxalate deposition, but rarely leads to acute deterioration in renal function, This entity should be consi dered in individuals with steatorrhea and no other cause for their ren al failure. (C) 1995 by the National Kidney Foundation, Inc.