Can young adult patients with proteinuric IgA nephropathy perform physical exercise?
GROUND: It is not known whether physical exercise increases daily proteinuria in patients with proteinuric nephropathies, thus accelerating progression of the renal lesion. This study evaluates the acute effects of physical exercise on proteinuria in young adults with immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy. METHODS: Changes induced by intense physical exercise on quantitative and qualitative proteinuria were evaluated in basal conditions and after 10 days of ramipril therapy in 10 patients with IgA nephropathy, normal glomerular filtration rate (GFR), proteinuria between 0.8 and 1.49 g/24 h, and “glomerular” microhematuria before and after the end of a maximal treadmill Bruce test (B-test). The basal study also was performed in 10 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers. RESULTS: At rest, GFR averaged 141 +/- 23 mL/min; it increased by 16.3% +/- 3.3% (P < 0.005) and 7.1% +/- 1.6% at 60 and 120 minutes after the B-test, respectively. At rest, GFR-corrected proteinuria averaged protein of 0.