What is amyloidosis?
Amyloidosis is a rare disease that occurs when amyloid proteins are deposited in tissues and organs. Amyloid proteins are abnormal proteins the body cannot break down and recycle as it does with normal proteins. When amyloid proteins clump together, they form amyloid deposits. The buildup of these deposits damages organs and tissues.
Amyloidosis can affect different organs and tissues in different people, and it can affect more than one organ at the same time. The symptoms and severity of amyloidosis depend on which organs and tissues are affected. Amyloidosis most frequently affects the kidneys, heart, nervous system, liver, and gastrointestinal tract.
How common is kidney-related amyloidosis?
Amyloidosis is rare. AL amyloidosis is the most common type of amyloidosis in the United States, and it affects approximately 40 out of every 1 million Americans.2 The other types of amyloidosis are even less common.
Who is more likely to develop kidney-related amyloidosis?
The risk factors for kidney-related amyloidosis depend on the type of amyloidosis.
AL amyloidosis
AL amyloidosis is most common in people over the age of 65, and the risk of developing AL amyloidosis increases as you get older.2
AA amyloidosis
AA amyloidosis is most common in people who have experienced a long-lasting infection or chronic inflammatory disorder.
LECT2 amyloidosis
LECT2 amyloidosis is most common in Hispanic adults, particularly those of Mexican descent.
Hereditary amyloidosis
Hereditary amyloidosis is more common in people who have a family member with the condition.
Dialysis-related amyloidosis
Risk of developing dialysis-related amyloidosis increases the longer you have been on dialysis, the older you are at the start of dialysis treatment, and the more your kidney function has declined.3
What are the complications of kidney-related amyloidosis?
Amyloid that builds up in the kidneys can damage the kidneys and affect the kidneys’ ability to filter blood. This damage can cause wastes to build up in your body, which may worsen kidney damage and lead to kidney failure.
What causes kidney-related amyloidosis?
Amyloidosis is caused by an abnormal folding of proteins. These proteins can clump together and form amyloid deposits. The deposits collect in organs and tissues and may lead to organ damage and health problems, including kidney disease. Experts have identified more than 30 different proteins that can form amyloid.4
AL amyloidosis
Plasma cells NIH external link—a type of blood cell made by stem cells NIH external link in your bone marrow NIH external link—can produce abnormal proteins that cannot hold their shape. These abnormal proteins clump together, causing AL amyloidosis.
AA amyloidosis
Long-lasting infections or chronic inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis NIH external link, inflammatory bowel disease, familial Mediterranean fever NIH external link, and tuberculosis NIH external link can trigger a protein to build up and cause AA amyloidosis.
LECT2 amyloidosis
Researchers do not know exactly what causes the LECT2 protein to form amyloid.
Hereditary amyloidosis
Genetic mutations passed down in families can cause your body—most often, your liver—to produce amyloid proteins. The amyloid proteins collect in certain parts of your body, such as the kidneys, and cause damage. There are many different types of hereditary amyloidosis, each associated with a different gene mutation and type of protein.
Dialysis-related amyloidosis
Dialysis doesn’t remove enough of a protein called beta-2 microglobulin from the blood. Over time, this protein can build up and deposit in bones, joints, and tendons, leading to dialysis-related amyloidosis.
How do health care professionals diagnose kidney-related amyloidosis?
Health care professionals use your medical and family history, a physical exam, and one or more tests to confirm your diagnosis of amyloidosis, identify the type of amyloidosis, and determine treatment.
What tests do health care professionals use to diagnose kidney-related amyloidosis?
Your health care professional may use one or more of the following tests to diagnose amyloidosis.