Nutcracker syndrome due to left-sided inferior vena cava compression and treated with superior mesenteric artery transposition

Abstract

Left renal vein hypertension secondary to left renal vein compression has been described as a cause of persistent hematuria in nutcracker syndrome. Malformation of the inferior vena cava (IVC), although rare and frequently asymptomatic, may also result in left renal vein hypertension, with resultant hematuria when it is severely compressed. We report a 20-year-old man with persistent hematuria due to compression of left-sided IVC. The patient was successfully treated by means of superior mesenteric artery (SMA) transposition and division of the fibrous bundle at the origin of the SMA. His postoperative course was uneventful. Compression of the left IVC is a unique form of nutcracker syndrome. SMA transposition, together with division of a fibrous bundle at the origin of the SMA if present, is a safe and effective surgical procedure for this special entity.