Renal consequences of long-term, low-dose intentional ingestion of ethylene glycol

Acute renal failure can result from a wide variety of causes. When the cause of acute renal failure is unclear, the history, physical examination, and laboratory findings are crucial to help establish the cause. However, the cause of acute renal failure may remain unclear even after gathering this information. In this report, we describe a case of acute chronic renal failure in which the cause of acute renal failure was not determined until a kidney biopsy was performed, which revealed calcium oxalate crystals in the renal parenchyma, a finding pathognomonic for ethylene glycol ingestion.