Using a right common femoral artery approach a diagnostic flush aortogram was performed to exclude extrarenal feeders www.selleckchem.com/products/MG132.html to the tumor. A selective catheterization of the upper and lower pole left renal artery revealed that the upper renal artery was exclusively supplying the renal parenchyma not affected by the AML with no significant feeding of the tumor (Fig. 3) whereas the lower renal artery solely supplied the giant AML (Fig. 4). The diameter of the lower left artery was 6.5 mm. Embolization of the tumor-feeding lower left renal artery was performed with an 8-mm Amplatzer Vascular Plug (AVP; AGA Medical, Golden Valley, MN, USA). The AVP was deployed through a long 6-F envoy-guiding catheter (Codman & Shurtleff, Raynham, MA, USA) with 0.070�� ID (1.8 mm).

An instant and complete occlusion of the lower left renal artery was achieved (Fig. 5). Fig. 3 Selective angiogram of the left upper renal artery supplying approximately two-thirds of the regular renal parenchyma. There are no significant feeders to the angiomyolipoma Fig. 4 Selective angiogram of the left lower renal artery which is exclusively supplying the angiomyolipoma tumor mass Fig. 5 Implantation of an Amplatzer Vascular Plug Type II in the left lower renal artery. There is an abrupt and complete occlusion of the AML supplying vessel Immediately after embolization the patient complained of left-sided abdominal pain, which was treated with a single dose of 50 mg pethidine i.v. As a consequence of tumor devascularization the patient developed post-embolization syndrome characterized by acute pain, malaise, nausea, severe night sweats, and temperatures of up to 39��C 10 days following the procedure.

A follow-up CT scan showed necrosis of AML with signs of abscess formation (Fig. 6) 14 days post embolization. A nephron-sparing surgical resection of the residual AML was performed, preserving the healthy upper pole of the left kidney, which was supplied by the separate upper renal artery. The patient was discharged from hospital 4 days later. Fig. 6 Coronal view of the CT demonstrates an extended necrosis (large white arrows) of the angiomyolipoma tumor mass 10 days after the selective arterial embolization. The air bubbles are indicative for an abscess formation (small white arrows) Discussion Predictive factors for bleeding complications in patients with renal AML are tumor size (10), presence of symptoms (11), and presence of tuberous sclerosis (4).

Different AV-951 embolization techniques for the treatment of AML have been described. The ultimate goal of every SAE is to achieve complete tumor devascularization and to preserve healthy renal parenchyma. Ramon et al. utilized a mixture of 20 mL ethanol and 1 mL (one bottle) of 45�C150 ��m PVA particles for SAE (10). Lee et al. describe a superselective approach using a coaxial microcatheter: First, the targeted tumor vessel was tapped with microcoils (12).