Understanding recurrent glomerulonephritis in renal transplants: 50 years of progress.

Glomerulonephritis that resulted in end-stage renal disease in a transplant recipient can recur in the iso- or allo-grafted kidney. Fifty years ago seminal observations identified the extent and nature of such recurrences of original diseases in iso-grafts and evidence has accumulated over the subsequent decades that recurrent glomerulonephritis is not uncommon in allografts, although its frequency and clinical significance varies widely according to the type and aggressiveness of the specific form of glomerular disease. Much progress has been made in characterizing the risk of recurrence but much less progress in prevention and/or treatment of recurrences. As the field of renal transplantation moves inexorably toward elimination of the histocompatibility obstacles to acceptance of the kidney allograft, the issue of recurrent glomerulonephritis will gain greater importance.