Renal infarct: a rare disease due to a rare etiology

Abstract

Renal infarction is caused by profound hypoperfusion secondary to embolic/thrombotic occlusion of the renal artery or vasospasm of the renal artery. We present a case of a 54-year-old patient who presented with nausea, vomiting, and vague abdominal pain. He had frequent episodes of migraine headaches and he treated himself with as needed rizatriptan. CT scan of the abdomen showed renal cortical infarction. After extensive investigations, etiology of his renal infarct was deemed to be due to rizatriptan.

Bilateral Renal Infarctions During the Use of Sumatriptan

“…There are 5 previous reports of renal infarction due to triptan use, with only 1 case of sumatriptan-associated renal infarction in a transplanted kidney. 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 In the case of the transplant kidney renal infarction, the presumed etiology was concomitant use of cyclosporine, a known vasoconstrictor, and sumatriptan, leading to renal infarction. Our case identified no other vasoconstrictive agents outside of the repeated sumatriptan use.…”

Editor's notes

“…Case reports include a renal infarct following treatment for migraine ( 6 ); a salmonella-associated mycotic aneurism ( 7 ); a case-based review of the literature of the Brugada syndrome ( 8 ); cardiac tamponade caused by a seroma, years after a thymectomy for myasthenia gravis ( 9 ); Moyamoya disease in a 19-year-old American ( 10 ); presyncope in a patient from Shanghai due to non-compaction cardiomyopathy ( 11 ); and dramatic ECG images in a case of extraordinary hyperkalemia ( 12 ). Two dramatic clinical images are reported: Sister Mary Joseph's nodule secondary to lung cancer abdominal metastases ( 13 ) and a case of nummular eczema ( 14 ) submitted from Katmandu, Nepal.…”