Retroperitoneal Fibrosis Clinical Presentation
- Author: Chandra Shekhar Biyani, MBBS, MS, DUrol, FRCS(Urol), FEBU; Chief Editor: Bradley Fields Schwartz, DO, FACS more...
History
The symptoms of retroperitoneal fibrosis (RPF) are vague and nonspecific. Duration of symptoms prior to diagnosis is approximately 6-12 months.[18, 19] Retroperitoneal fibrosis progresses through 2 clinical stages: (1) an early phase, which relates to the onset of inflammatory process, and (2) a late phase.
- The most common symptom (92% of cases) is a dull, poorly localized, noncolicky pain in the flank, back, scrotum, or lower abdomen.[20] Other symptoms include fever, lower-extremity edema, phlebitis, and deep venous thrombosis. In children, pain may be referred to the ipsilateral hip or gluteal region, resulting in resistance to hip extension.[21]
- Other uncommon presentations include weight loss, nausea, vomiting, anorexia, and malaise.
- Rare manifestations of retroperitoneal fibrosis reported in the literature include Raynaud phenomenon, ureteric colic, hematuria, claudication, and urinary frequency. Retroperitoneal fibrosis can be associated with Crohn disease, ulcerative colitis, and sclerosing cholangitis.
Physical
- Approximately half of individuals with retroperitoneal fibrosis have hypertension, which is probably the result of many factors. An increase in renin release secondary to obstructive uropathy may lead to hypertension. In some patients, volume-dependent hypertension may result from obstructive nephropathy.
- Occasionally, an abdominal mass, fever, or lower limb edema is present.
- Obstruction of the ureters with a varying degree of renal insufficiency is the earliest and most common organ involvement.
Causes
Sixty to 70% of cases of retroperitoneal fibrosis are idiopathic.[18, 22] However, a number of etiologic factors are known.
- Etiologic factors associated with retroperitoneal fibrosis are as follows:
- Malignancy
- Inflammatory periaortitis (severe atherosclerosis)
- Chronic retroperitoneal inflammation
- Retroperitoneal trauma
- Autoimmune disease
- Irradiation
- Certain drugs (eg, beta-blockers, methysergide, methyldopa)
- In approximately 8% of patients, retroperitoneal fibrosis is associated with malignancy. This association is observed with lymphomas, sarcomas, and many carcinomas, including carcinomas of the breast, lung, stomach, colon, bladder, prostate, and cervix.[23] Metastatic tumor cells within the retroperitoneum cause an exuberant desmoplastic response. Malignant retroperitoneal fibrosis is radiologically distinct from retroperitoneal lymph node metastasis in that it typically displaces the ureter medically.
- Retroperitoneal fibrosis has been associated with connective tissue disease both in children and adults.[24, 25]
- Immune-mediated connective-tissue diseases in retroperitoneal fibrosis include the following:
- Ankylosing spondylitis
- Systemic lupus erythematosus
- Scleroderma
- Systemic vasculitis
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Riedel thyroiditis
- Immune complex membranous glomerulonephritis
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| Retroperitoneal Fibrosis | Retroperitoneal Lymphoma | Sclerosing Mesenteritis | Desmoid-Type Fibromatosis | Inflammatory Myofibroblastic Tumor | Well-Differentiated Liposarcoma Sclerosing Variant | |
| Ureteral displacement | Medial | Lateral | ||||
| Ureteral obstruction | ~80% | ~50% | Rare | Rare | Rare | Unknown |
| Aortic displacement | Rare | Anterior | ||||
| Reactive perivascular lymphoid aggregates | 100% | Absent | Variable | Rare | Variable | Present in the inflammatory type |
| Necrosis | Absent | Variable | Fat necrosis | Rare | Focal | Fat necrosis |
| Vasculitis | ~50% | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Clonality | Absent | Variable | Absent | Absent | Absent | Present |
| Β-catenin | Negative | Unknown | Negative | Positive in 90% of cases | Negative | Variable positivity |
| ALK-1 | Negative | Usually negative | Negative | Negative | Positive in 50% of cases | Negative |
| CD-117 | Negative in spindle cell component | Rare | Variable | Negative | Rare | Negative |
| Desmin | Negative | Negative | Variable | Rare | Usually positive | Rare |
| S100 | Negative | Negative | Negative | Rare | Negative | Usually positive in the adipocytic component |

