aetiology
Last reviewed 01/2018
The aetiology of this condition is unknown.
Goodpasture's syndrome often starts after an upper respiratory tract infection (there is an association with influenza A2 virus)
- during the 1919 influenza epidemic, Goodpasture
described a disease association between pulmonary hemorrhage and rapidly progressive
glomerulonephritis (RPGN)
- in 1977, Lerner et al. discovered that the sera and/or kidneys of some patients with this syndrome contained antibodies against the glomerular basement membrane
There is a strong association with HLA-DR2 (about 90%). A more severe form of the disease occurs in patients who also have HLA-B7.
Reference:
- E. Goodpasture. The significance of certain pulmonary lesions in relation to the etiology of influenza. Am J Med Sci 1919; 158:863–870