Anatomy and embryology of congenital surgical anomalies: Congenital Anomalies of the Kidney and Urinary Tract

Abstract

Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract or "CAKUT" describes a spectrum of developmental disorders with a range of associated clinical presentations and functional consequences. CAKUT underlies the majority of chronic kidney disease and kidney replacement therapy requirement in children, but functional deterioration can also emerge in adulthood. Understanding the normal embryological processes involved in kidney development allows us to appreciate the timing and sequence of critical events implicated when things go wrong. In this review, we will describe the normal developmental mechanisms and relate this to what we currently know about the pathological processes involved in various forms of CAKUT. We will also review the proposed etiological factors, in particular genetics, involved in CAKUT.

Keywords: Antenatal; CAKUT; Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract; Development; Kidney malformations; Paediatric nephrology.