Renal complications with aortic surgery.

Because of the limited ability to alter the course of acute renal failure, the vascular surgeon's best strategy is prevention of renal dysfunction. Preoperative screening can identify patients at high risk for acute renal failure after aortic reconstruction. Although the mainstay of preventative therapy is maintenance of adequate renal perfusion, other adjunctive measures are available before, during, and after aortic surgery, which may reduce the incidence of acute renal failure. Copyright 2001 by W.B. Saunders Company