Renal parenchymal malacoplakia: a rare cause of ARF with a review of recent literature

Renal parenchymal malacoplakia is a rare cause of acute renal failure. Traditionally, it was associated with a high mortality rate and commonly resulted in renal failure requiring renal replacement therapy. The authors report on a 70-year-old woman who presented with acute renal failure caused by renal parenchymal malacoplakia. Her renal function recovered after levofloxacin treatment. All cases reported in the English-language literature since 1990, when fluoroquinolone was first used to treat malacoplakia, were reviewed. Although some patients still had renal failure, with renal biopsy and fluoroquinolone treatment, the patient mortality rate from renal parenchymal malacoplakia is remarkably low.