A study published in the British Medical Journal revealed that of 88 children who had contracted hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) between 1966 and 1985:
• 31% had protein in their urine (proteinuria)
• 18% had decreased glomerular filtration rate (GFR)
• 10% had proteinuria, decreased GFR, and hypertension
• 3% had end stage renal disease without ever recovering kidney function.
In addition, the study found that those patients on dialysis longer resulted in reduced GFR. A study published in The Journal of Pediatrics discussed the long-term outcome and prognostic indicators in HUS. In this study, 61 children with HUS prior to 1983 were studied. The study determined that the duration of nonpassage of urine dictated whether or not the patient would develop HUS. Patients with decreased production of urine (oliguria) that lasted for more than 2 weeks developed HUS. In addition, patients with absent production of urine (anuria) for more than 1 week developed HUS.
A study published in Pediatric Nephrology revealed that anuria for more than 1 week and hypertension during that phase would result in loss of nephrons (responsible for filtering blood in the kidneys). Loss of nephrons would cause hyperfiltration in the parts of the kidney that still did work, resulting in progressive renal disease and kidney failure.