"The beneficial and protective effects of hydronephrosis"

Hydronephrosis is generally considered a pathologic process, and especially in infancy is widely viewed as caused by obstruction, potentially injurious to the kidney and in need of expeditious surgical treatment. However a number of clinical and experimental studies suggest exactly the opposite: that hydronephrosis is not pathological but actually a compensating mechanism designed to protect the kidney from high pressures and renal damage. Furthermore, because hydronephrosis in the infant involves an already compliant and distensible renal pelvis it appears to be uniquely beneficial. Herein the experimental basis for a counterargument challenging the harmful effects of hydronephrosis will be presented.