Unilateral renal cortical necrosis with contralateral hydronephrosis after surgery for uterus carcinoma

Renal cortical necrosis (RCN) represents a rare cause of acute renal failure that is characterized by necrosis of the renal cortex with sparing of the medulla. Most previous RCN cases reported have been bilateral and have occurred in pregnancy. Unilateral RCN is a quite rare disorder. Here, we report a case of unilateral RCN with contralateral hydronephrosis after surgery for uterus carcinoma. In this patient it seems that hydronephrosis had been present before RCN occurrence. It is suggested that ureteric obstruction protects against RCN development. Received: July 7, 2002 / Accepted: November 8, 2002 Present address: NIH/NIDDK, Bldg. 10, Room 4D51, 10 Center Drive-MSC 1370, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA Tel. +1-301-435-6582; Fax +1-301-435-6587 e-mail: Seijih@intra.niddk.nih.gov Acknowledgments The authors gratefully acknowledge the help of Tianxin Yang, MD, PhD, Jurgen Schnermann, MD (Laboratory for Renal Function and Development, NIDDK, NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA) and Josie Briggs, MD (Director, DKUHD, NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA). Correspondence to:S. Hashimoto