Background: Several diseases may affect the renal artery and the circulation of the kidney. In these cases alternative blood flow should be secured to preserve renal function. There are experimental methods for this, such as omentonephropexy. In this model the new vessels grow into the kidney from the omentum.
Methods: Thirty mongrel dogs were anaesthetized and operated on. The left kidney was exposed, partially decapsulated, then omental angiogenic factor extractum was placed on the renal surface and the greater omentum was fixed there. After 4 weeks the left renal artery was ligated, and further 4 weeks later the right kidney was removed. Hematology tests were performed, urea, creatinine levels were measured and urine samples were tested after each operations. For statistical analysis Mann-Whitney rank sum and Wilcoxon signed rank tests were used.
Results: The survival rate was 20%. Significant elevations were observed in serum creatinine and urea levels after each operation, mostly after the third one and in non-surviving animals. Moderate anaemia was also present.
Conclusion: The efficacy of the neovascularization presented in this study and the survival rate indicate further investigations are necessary in order to explore the mechanism and the dynamics of the vascularization processes.