Chronic nephritis is the infantile glomerulonephritis with a course of over a year accompanied by renal insufficiency and (or) persistent hypertension. The disease may be primary, secondary or hereditary while the prognosis is less favourable. This section mainly discusses primary chronic nephritis clinically marked by proteinuria, hematuria, edema, hypertension and decreased renal function. It belongs to the categories of "shuizhong" (edema) and "xulao" (consumptive disease) in TCM.

The disease may develop from a few lingering glomerular diseases such as acute nephritis and nephrotic syndrome, mostly with a long latent period. When the patient goes to see a doctor because of hematuria, proteinuria and (or) hypertension discovered during routine physical examination or nonspecific manifestions such as pale complexion, hypodynamia and retarded growth and development, the confirmed diagnosis shows that the patient has already suffered from concomitant renal insufficiency of different degrees.