Renal artery aneurysm: ex vivo repair and autotransplantation: case report and review of the literature.

The incidence of renal artery aneurysm is unknown, its natural history is unclear and unpredictable, and the clinical symptoms are of little or no value in diagnosis. The risk of rupture is high in pregnant women, as in splenic artery aneurysms and in aneurysms greater than 2 cm in size. Digital subtraction angiography is the best diagnostic test. When an aneurysm is identified, surgery is the best treatment option to avoid hypertension or rupture of the aneurysm. Because of advances in organ preservation, nephrectomy, ex vivo repair, and autotransplantation is a safe and successful procedure. We report the case of a 2-cm-wide neck aneurysm that was treated by nephrectomy, ex vivo repair, and auto-transplantation.