Acute thrombosis in a contralateral kidney after radical nephrectomy: successful treatment by thrombolytic therapy...

A 67-year-old male became anuric immediately after a right radical nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma. The patient was diagnosed with an acute arterial thrombosis of the remaining kidney within 4 hours after surgery by both CT scan and angiography. Thrombolytic therapy was started by a transcatheteral infusion of tissue-type plasminogen activator (TPA) resulting in a complete recanalization. Hydration and systemic administration of heparin followed, and renal function recovered within 3 weeks. This is the first report of acute thrombosis in a contralateral renal artery immediately after a radical nephrectomy which was successfully treated with TPA. It is probable that compression of the contralateral renal artery by the retractor for an extended period of time during surgery led to this unfavorable condition.