ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Introduction: Kidneys in fetuses and newborns play an important role in the homeostasis regulation and are the most vulnerable to the action of damaging factors from the mother organism, therefore it is important to timely assess their morphofunctional state. The aim: The purpose of the study was to reveal the morphometrical features of fetuses and newborns kidneys from mothers, whose pregnancy was complicated by iron deficiency anemia of varying degrees of severity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Materials and methods: The material of the study was the tissue of kidneys of mature fetuses and newborns from mothers with physiological pregnancy (28 cases), as well as from mothers whose pregnancy was complicated by iron deficiency anemia of varying degrees of severity (85 cases). Morphometrical examination was performed during which the nephrogenic zone thickness, the specific volumes of renal corpuscles, tubules and stroma were determined. The absolute number of renal corpuscles, the specific volumes of immature and mature renal corpuscles and tubules were counted. RESULTS: Results: Maternal iron deficiency anemia of mild degree of severity in the offspring kidneys leads to an increase of the nephrogenic zone thickness; does not affect the absolute number of renal corpuscles; in fetuses in the cortical layer does not affect the specific volume of renal corpuscles, in the cortical and medullary layers decreases the specific volume of tubules and increases the specific volume of stroma, while in newborns in the cortical layer does not affect the specific volumes of renal corpuscles and tubules, increases the specific volume of stroma, in the medullary layer reduces the specific volume of tubules and increases the specific volume of stroma; increases the specific volumes of immature renal corpuscles, tubules and reduces the specific volumes of mature renal corpuscles, tubules. Maternal iron deficiency anemia of moderate and severe degree of severity in the offspring kidneys leads to an increase of the nephrogenic zone thickness; reduces the absolute number of renal corpuscles; decreases the specific volume of renal corpuscles in the cortical layer, reduces the specific volume of tubules and increases the specific volume of stroma in the cortical and medullary layers; increases the specific volumes of immature renal corpuscles, tubules and decreases the specific volumes of mature renal corpuscles and tubules. CONCLUSION: Conclusions: Quantitative changes of the structural elements in the fetuses and newborns kidneys from mothers with iron deficiency anemia, characterized by a decrease of the parenchymal component with the presence a significant number of immature structures in it and an increase of the stromal component, will lead to kidneys dysfunction in such children.