glomerular crescents

Definition: Glomerular crescents are composed of proliferating parietal epithelial cells and occur with any injury that breaks the capillary wall.

Types

 cellular crescents
 fibrocellular crescents
 fibrous crescents

Etiology

 immune etiology

• linear IgG stain of GBM
  • > anti-GBM antibody mediated glomerulonephritis

• other immune complex positivity
  • > other immune complex disease
    • lupus nephritis
    • post-infectious glomerulonephritis
    • IgA nephropathy (Berger disease)

 pauci-immune etiology (minimal or no deposits by IF and/or EM)

• Wegener granulomatosis
• microscopic polyangiitis
• NB: Wegener granulomatosis and microscopic polyangiitis cannot be distinguished from each other in a renal biopsy. They both have glomerular necrotizing lesions with glomerular crescents.

Etiology (Exemples)

 crescentic glomerulonephritis

• pauci-immune necrotizing crescentic glomerulonephritis