A patient with visceral leishmaniasis and acute renal failure in necrotizing glomerulonephritis

Renal involvement is an unusual complication of human visceral leishmaniasis (VL). The kidney lesions are characterized more by interstitial damage than glomerular or vascular damage. This case represents a 20 years-old man admitted with pancytopenia, purpura, acute renal failure, and nephrotic syndrome associated with heavy proteinuria. The diagnosis of VL was made on bone marrow smear cytology where Leishmania amastigotes were found. The renal biopsy revealed a segmental necrotising glomerulonephritis with 70% crescents. Treatment with liposomal amphotericine B alone has been ineffective on the course of renal failure, however, partial recovery was obtained after the administration of high dose corticosteroids. We present the various clinical, biological, and histological aspects of this case, from the south of France. It gave us the opportunity to discuss these unusual manifestations of immunomediated necrotising skin and renal lesions.