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World J Nephrol. Jun 25, 2026; 15(2): 118229
Published online Jun 25, 2026. doi: 10.5527/wjn.v15.i2.118229
Published online Jun 25, 2026. doi: 10.5527/wjn.v15.i2.118229
Glomerulonephritis through the lens of ultrasound and radiology
Guido Gembillo, Lorenzo Lo Cicero, Rocco Bruccoleri, Domenico Santoro, Unit of Nephrology and Dialysis, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, Messina 98125, Italy
Salvatore Silipigni, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Morphologic and Functional Imaging, Policlinico Universitario G.Martino, University of Messina, Messina 98121, Italy
Concetto Sessa, Walter Morale, Department of Nephrology and Dialysis, Maggiore Nino Baglieri Hospital, Modica 97015, Italy
Luca Soraci, Andrea Corsonello, Unit of Geriatric Medicine, Italian National Research Center on Aging (IRCCS INRCA), Cosenza 87100, Calabria, Italy
Annalisa Cozza, Centre for Biostatistics and Applied Geriatric Clinical Epidemiology, Italian National Research Center on Aging (IRCCS INRCA), Cosenza 87100, Calabria, Italy
Luigi Peritore, Unit of Nephrology and Dialysis, Azienda Sanitaria Locale del Verbano-Cusio-Ossola (ASL VCO), Verbania 28920, Piedmont, Italy
Andrea Corsonello, Department of Pharmacy and Health and Nutritional Sciences, University of Calabria, Rende 87036, Italy
Antonio Bottari, Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Ima
Author contributions: Gembillo G and Santoro D conceived and designed the study; Gembillo G and Silipigni S performed the literature search and data collection; Silipigni S and Sessa C independently screened the articles and assessed eligibility; Lo Cicero L, Luca Soraci, and Cozza A analyzed and interpreted the data; Gembillo G drafted the manuscript; Bruccoleri R, Peritore L, Morale W, Corsonello A, and Bottari A critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content; Santoro D supervised the study. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Guido Gembillo, MD, PhD, Unit of Nephrology and Dialysis, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, Via Consolare Valeria, 1, Messina 98125, Italy. guidogembillo@live.it
Received: December 28, 2025
Revised: January 29, 2026
Accepted: March 2, 2026
Published online: June 25, 2026
Processing time: 170 Days and 17.3 Hours
Revised: January 29, 2026
Accepted: March 2, 2026
Published online: June 25, 2026
Processing time: 170 Days and 17.3 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Renal biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosing glomerulonephritis, but imaging plays an increasingly important complementary role. Conventional ultrasound provides essential prognostic information, while advanced techniques, including contrast-enhanced ultrasound, elastography, multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging, and nuclear medicine, show promise for assessing fibrosis and disease activity. However, overlapping imaging findings across glomerulonephritis subtypes and lack of standardization limit their diagnostic specificity. These non-invasive modalities can aid in risk stratification and disease monitoring, but cannot yet replace biopsy for definitive diagnosis or therapeutic decision-making.