 Nephrectomy / Partial Nephrectomy
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A nephrectomy is a surgical procedure to remove a kidney that is diseased or not functioning. A partial nephrectomy is performed to remove a portion of a kidney. Kidneys can be damaged due to blockage of the urinary tract from congenital causes or kidney stones, or kidney diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, or cancer.
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In children, kidney disease is usually diagnosed by a blood test or X-ray, ultrasound, or CT scan; often following a urinary tract infection.
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A non-functioning kidney is treated with surgery (nephrectomy) to remove all or part of the kidney. There are three methods of performing the surgery:
- Traditional open surgery requires a large incision to expose the kidney, and requires a lengthy recovery.
- Laparoscopic surgery uses minimally invasive operating techniques to remove the kidney. While this method reduces the size of the incision and recovery time, control and accuracy limit its use to simpler cases.
- Children's Hospital Boston is one of the few hospitals in the world to use robotic surgery technology for nephrectomy procedures. Patients receive the benefits of minimally-invasive surgery, and the robotic surgery equipment offers excellent visibility and control that make it suitable even for complex cases.
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The long-term outlook for a child with a complete or partial nephrectomy is very good, since most people have a second, normally functioning kidney that can adequately meet the body's needs.
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