Purpose: To report the successful staged treatment of a patient with a thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm (TAA), who presented with renal insufficiency attributable to renal artery stenosis.
Methods and results: A 66-year-old woman with a 6-cm Crawford type IV TAA presented with uncontrolled hypertension (240/130 mmHg), worsening congestive heart failure, and progressive renal insufficiency (serum creatinine 3.8 mg/dL) caused by renal artery stenosis to a solitary functioning kidney. Renal artery stenting restored normal renal and pulmonary function, and elective TAA repair 6 weeks after percutaneous stenting was uneventful. Restenosis (50% diameter reduction) in the renal artery was found 10 months later and treated with repeat dilation. Secondary patency was maintained at follow-up 21 months after redilation.
Conclusions: It appears feasible to use preliminary renal artery stenting to reduce operative risk in TAA surgical candidates with renal insufficiency secondary to renal artery stenosis.