Renal damage of varying degree was invariably associated with acute epidemic hemorrhagic fever (EHF) in the Korean experience.1,9,19,21 Profuse albuminuria was an important criterion of the diagnosis early in the course of the illness, and subsequently hematuria, cylindruria, and hyposthenuria were regularly found. In the more severe cases, oliguria, and on occasion, brief anuria supervened,1,2,17,19 usually, but not invariably associated with protracted hypotension.2,5 Yet, knowledge of the natural course of the renal lesion is restricted to relatively acute experience of the initial illness,5,12,16,19 and there is insufficient reported data on which to base any long-range prognosis. As some 2,000 individuals recovered from diagnosed EHF, it would seem important to consider the likelihood of chronic renal impairment after apparent recovery from acute EHF.
Pathologic studies of patients dying during the acute illness stressed the extensiveness and severity of the renal lesions. The acute changes in the kidney included marked parenchymatous degeneration