Surgical Repair of the Kidney after Blunt Renal Injury Using a Vicryl Mesh an Experimental Study

Kim, Bup Wan; Chang, Sae Kook

Abstract

Eighteen experimentally induced blunt and sharp renal injury in rabbits were treated either with an alloplastic renal capsule made of Vicryl mesh or with through and through chromic catgut sutures or with no suture as controls. A simple apparatus was used to cause uniform renal injury and the device was modification of an AO Kuntscher nail extractor. The Vicryl mesh capsule was made by ourselves with #2 and #4 Vicryl. The postoperative healing course were followed up until 6 weeks and isotope renogram showed good renal function in 15 cases. However, when compared to the controls, the kidney which had been repaired with Vicryl mesh contained considerably less scar and showed neither perirenal fibrosis or atrophy of the parenchyma in the vicinity of the capsule. Our preliminary results seem to confirm that simple and rapid surgical treatment of intermediate degree renal injuries is possible using the alloplastic Vicryl mesh capsule. The method may be also suitable for reconstruction of the parenchyma following nephrotomies, such as for removal of staghorn calculi.