Fig 1.
Of the 238 adult patients with minimal change disease in the cohort, 192 were eligible for this study. Analysis 1: For the 100 identified patients with relapse, treatment regimens at every relapse were reviewed. Analysis 2: To evaluate the association between steroid dose and subsequent outcomes, patients who fulfilled the criteria as indicated in the flow chart were divided into two groups: “High-PSL” and “Low-PSL.” Abbreviations: CR; complete remission, PSL; prednisolone; CyA, cyclosporine A.
Fig 2.
Demographic pattern of immunosuppressive treatment for adult minimal change disease relapses.
Proportion of steroid and other immunosuppressive drugs use in treatment of adult MCD from initial treatment to fifth relapse are shown in bar-graphs. The details about types of used non-steroidal immunosuppressants are summarized in S4 Table. Abbreviations: MCD, minimal change disease; PSL, prednisolone; ISA, non-steroidal immunosuppressive agents; CR, complete remission.
Fig 3.
Prednisolone dose for initial treatment and relapses.
Steroid dose in treatment of adult MCD from initial treatment to fifth relapse is shown in box-plots. The dosage at the start of each treatment was selected and the dosage of additional increasing until complete remission was excluded. Abbreviations: PSL, prednisolone; IQR, interquartile range.
Fig 4.
Second relapse-free survival of minimal change disease after first relapse.
Second relapse-free survival after first relapse in the High-prednisolone (PSL) group (n = 34) and Low-PSL group (n = 36) were calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method and compared by log-rank test. Abbreviations: MCD, minimal change disease; PSL, prednisolone.
Table 1.
Clinical characteristics of the patients at first relapse.
Table 2.
Re-induction of complete remission, subsequent relapses and adverse events in relapsed cases.
Table 3.
Predictors of second relapse.
Table 4.
PSL dose for the treatment of first relapse as a predictor of second relapse.