COMPLEX ECHOGRAPHIC SIGNS OF GLOMERULONEPHRITIS IN CHILDREN WITH ACUTE AND CHRONIC COURSE

It is important to suggest that according to the World Health Organization, diseases of the urinary system currently occupy the 2nd place among the main pathologies in children. Over the past decade, the incidence of kidney diseases in children has increased by 2.5-3 times and, depending on the region, reaches from 20.6 to 106 cases per 1000 children per year. One of the pathologies of the urinary system in children is glomerulonephritis, which is a large group of immune-inflammatory diseases that mainly affect the glomerular apparatus of the kidneys. Despite the complexity of different forms of the disease, the general result of its development to a certain stage is renal fibrosis, which includes glomerular sclerosis, tubular atrophy, interstitial fibrosis and changes in the vascular network of the kidneys. Early detection of fibrosis in kidney diseases in children is important for preventing the development of chronic renal failure. Chronic glomerulonephritis is often detected at the stage of significant and irreversible kidney damage with the development of nephrosclerosis. In such cases, the opportunity for timely diagnosis and treatment is missed, which could prevent the development of the pathological process in the kidneys, but information on this issue is limited. Definitely, a number of scientific studies are being conducted around the world aimed at improving the methods of early diagnosis and treatment of glomerulonephritis in children, as well as reducing the number of relapses. In this area, it is advisable to use non-ionizing safe diagnostic methods when examining children with this disease. In standard diagnostic methods, multiparameter ultrasound (gray-scale, Doppler, elastography), excretory urography and radionuclide scintigraphy are widely used. However, due to allergic reactions to contrast agents and significant negative effects of the radiation dose during X-ray and radiological studies, the use of these methods in children is limited. In such cases, the use of complex technologies, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), provides additional opportunities for accurate and reliable diagnostics. In this regard, there is a growing need to search for methods that allow early detection of glomerulonephritis in children, including further development and improvement of non-ionizing methods and detailed analysis of long-term results, which is of particular importance for solving many unresolved issues.