FSGS and Allopurinol

Question
Good day and thank you for fielding my question.



I am a 49 year old male and was diagnosed at one year old as having Minimal Change Disease. When I was 28 I had another biopsy and the diagnosis was changed to FSGS.



Over the past 15 years I have become more steroid dependent, typically having relapses when I taper to 7mg every other day of Prednisone.



Late last year I had experienced a severe case of gout for the very first time. In January of this year I was placed on 300mg/day of Allopurinol. It sounds miraculous but since I started Allopurinol, I have stopped spilling protein and I have been totally off of steroids. It's as if the Allopurinol has been the magic bullet that I have been waiting for for decades.



Have you heard of such a case or read of research that links Allopurinol to what I'm calling a case of "spontaneous remission"?



Thanks again.


Answer
Hi Mike,



Thanks for your question on "Allexperts'.



Up to one third of patients with FSGS have spontaneous remissions. You may have been one of those. I have not heard of Allopurinol causing remission in nephrotic states.



Sincerely,



Dr. Shah