Retroperitoneal fibrosis (RPF) is a uncommon disease characterized by the presence of inflammatory and fibrous retroperitoneal tissue that often encircles the ureters or abdominal organs. The disease may be idiopathic or secondary to infections, malignancies, certain drugs or radiotherapy. Idiopathic form is an immune-mediated entity and a part of the broader spectrum of idiopathic diseases termed chronic periaortitis, characterized by a morphologically similar fibroinflammatory changes in aorta. In the article the most important diagnostic problems of RPF are reviewed.
Keywords: idiopathic and secondary retroperitoneal fibrosis; fibrosis; inflammation; F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography; computed tomography; magnetic resonance imaging.