Acute renal cortical necrosis - A case report and review of literature

Acute renal cortical necrosis (ACN) is an uncommon, catastrophic and preventable disease but remains as a common cause of acute renal failure of obstetrical origin in developing countries. Obstetric complications responsible for ACN include septic abortions, severe pre-eclampsia, amniotic fluid embolism, retained fetus, abortion and placenta previa which account for more than half of all causes of acute cortical necrosis. We report a case of a 34-year-old female with acute diffuse renal cortical necrosis secondary to obstetric complication followed by review of possible pathogenesis, diagnosis and management.