[A case of renal vein thrombosis]

A case of renal vein thrombosis in a seventy-five year old female was reported. She complained of severe left flank pain. The symptoms and signs resembled obstruction from a ureteral calculus. The kidney-ureter-bladder X-ray showed a calcification in the pelvic cavity. She was admitted under the initial diagnosis of left ureteral stone. The venous phase of renal arteriography revealed venous collaterals (ureteric vein and gonadal vein). Selective renal phlebography demonstrated a radiolucent area. Warfarin, 6 mg orally daily, has been administered for a year. It has effectively prevented subsequent emboli. This was a rare case of renal vein thrombosis in an old patient, because it was not associated with nephrotic syndrome or thromboembolic state and because it presented as sudden onset.