Most children with IgAN do not have any symptoms. For those who do, the common symptoms are:

• Blood in the urine (haematuria) – the urine may look red or dark brown (like a cola drink). This is more likely to occur after an infection such as a cold or sore throat and usually fades after a few days. The haematuria may also be invisible to the naked eye but seen under a microscope when the urine is tested (microscopic haematuria).
• Protein in the urine (proteinuria) – this is likely to only be found when the urine is tested with a dipstick or sent to the laboratory for analysis, but if there is a lot of protein, the urine may look frothy
• Swelling or puffiness (oedema) in different parts of your child’s body, especially around their eyes, legs and feet
• urinating less often or smaller amounts
• A few children get a large swelling around their tummy (ascites). It happens when fluid builds up in the peritoneal cavity, which is the area around the organs in the abdomen (tummy).
• A very small number of children feel breathless. This happens when fluid builds up in their lungs.

If your child has IgA nephropathy and a very swollen tummy or feels breathless, contact your doctor as soon as possible.

Other symptoms and signs

The below symptoms and signs are occasionally found in children with IgA nephropathy:

• feeling tired, low energy or difficulty concentrating
• decreased appetite (not wanting to eat)
• nausea (feeling sick) or vomiting (being sick), or diarrhoea
• pain in the tummy
• headaches that keep coming back or that do not go away
• pain, stiffness or swelling of the joints.

Complications

Some children have complications – health problems that happen because of the condition or its treatment.

• IgA nephropathy may lead to blood pressure that is too high (hypertension).
• Occasionally, the condition gets worse quickly and the kidneys work less well than normal – this is called rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis(RPGN).
• RPGN is one cause of acute kidney injury – when the kidneys quickly stop working as well as they should, over a short time.

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