[Congenital Renal Arteriovenous Fistula: a Rare Cause of Acute Abdomen and a Review of Its Literature]

Introduction: Congenital renal arteriovenous fistula is an abnormal connection between the arterial and venous system. Since the first case described in 1928 by Varela et al, no more than 200 cases have been published.

Material And Methods: A 45-year-old woman consulted for severe abdominal and low-back pain associated with arterial hypertension. The CT scan showed an infrarenal retroperitoneal lesion with invasion of neighboring structures.

Results: During the abdominal exploration, a vascular-looking lesion of 60 x 34 x 41 mm was identified. It was associated with right nephrectomy.

Discussion: The etiology of congenital fistulas remains unknown; it is believed that a congenital arterial aneurysm erodes into an adjacent vein and gradually increases its size. Other authors believe that the fistula exists since birth and gradually increases its size until it causes symptoms.

Conclusion: Congenital arteriovenous fistulas are rare entities, representing less than 25% of all renal arteriovenous malformations.