REVERSIBLE RENAL-FAILURE CAUSED BY A MICROSPORIDIAN INFECTION

Objective: To report a case of renal failure associated with microspor idian infection in an HIV-seropositive patient. Design: Case report. S etting: Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, England, UK. Patient : An HIV-seropositive patient presented febrile with abdominal pain wh o developed renal failure. Penal biopsy and urinalysis showed infectio n with a microsporidian of the genus Encephalitozoon. Intervention: Tr eatment with albendazole (400 mg) twice daily was associated with disa ppearance of infection from the urine, clinical improvement and return of renal function virtually to normal. Conclusion: HIV-seropositive i ndividuals with renal failure should have urine screened for microspor idia. The administration of albendazole in such cases may reverse rena l failure.