Abstract

The new revised classification of glomerulonephritis in systemic lupus erythematosus under the auspice of the International Society of Nephrology and the Renal Pathology Society (ISN/ RPS) was proposed in 2003. The revised classification preserves the simplicity of the original WHO classification, incorporates selective refinements concerning activity and chronicity from the 1982 and 1995 revisions, and adds a number of new modifications. Overall, it bears a strong similarity to the 1974 classification, but introduces several important modifications concerning quantitative and qualitative differences between class III and IV lesions. The new classification provides a clear and unequivocal description of the various lesions and classes of lupus nephritis as well as definitions for diagnostic terms. This review is introduced the ISN/RPS 2003 classification which will facilitates accurate communication between pathologists and clinicians.

• Keywords: Lupus nephritis;Classification;Kidney;Biopsy