Fifty-two (49.5%) of 105 children with Henoch-Schönlein purpura developed nephritis. Eleven (21.1%) of 52 nephritic patients were carried over beyond childhood, while 21 (40.4%) cases had normalized urinalyses in childhood. The carried-over patients had a higher incidence of severe proteinuria and tubular atrophy compared to those of patients with normalized urinalyses (p < 0.05). These results suggest that patients with severe proteinuria and tubular atrophy tend to have persistent urinary abnormalities beyond childhood.