The effects of partial nephrectomy on the blood pressure and renal function of hypertensive dogs

Abstract

<h2>Summary</h2> A group of 14 dogs that had undergone contralateral nephrectomy was subjected to partial nephrectomy six weeks or more after the onset of hypertension resulting from constriction of the renal artery. None of the dogs was relieved of hypertension after the first partial nephrectomy, but the blood pressure of one of five dogs subjected to a second partial nephrectomy did return to a normal level. All of the dogs had considerable functional renal reserve and there was a demonstrable increase in renal mass after the partial nephrectomies. The dogs tolerated removal of almost 40 per cent of the solitary kidney before persistent elevation of blood urea occurred. One dog survived heminephrectomy. Radioisotope renograms and Hippuran clearances were unaffected either by constriction of the renal artery or by partial nephrectomy. The histologic appearance of specimens of kidney was normal except in one instance in which focal pyelonephritis was found. The dog from which this specimen was removed did not survive partial nephrectomy. This study indicates that, in dogs, prolonged hypertension of renal origin is not relieved by partial nephrectomy. Our data do not seem to corroborate the theory of Braun-Menéndez^3–5that hypertension of renal origin is caused by failure of the kidney to neutralize a renotrophin.