Renal biopsy in the elderly.

314 patients, aged 65 years or older, were biopsied because of a history of renal disease. In 203 patients, glomerular disease was diagnosed with one fourth having systemic disease and the remaining primary glomerulonephritis. 90 patients had tubulointerstitial disease, and 21 patients showed prominent vascular pathology. In a comparison with patients of younger age groups, it appeared that amyloidosis, membranous nephropathy, vasculitis and diabetes had a significantly higher incidence in the elderly. Main glomerular syndromes such as nephrotic syndrome and rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis imply to be managed appropriately. Glomerulosclerosis was found in high frequency, either as an isolated feature or associated with other lesions. Glomerulosclerosis seemed to be ischemic in origin and seems to represent a distinct entity as a cause of pathology in the elderly.