What Is Renal Autotransplant (RAT)
Renal autotransplant is a type of surgery that helps patients manage severe, long-lasting kidney pain. During the procedure, transplant surgeons remove the kidney that's causing pain and implant—or place—this kidney in a different part of your body.
Even though one of your kidneys has been moved to a different location in your body, your body still works normally because it has two healthy kidneys.
What Happens During Renal Autotransplant Surgery?
During a renal autotransplant procedure, surgeons use a type of minimally-invasive surgery called laparoscopy to make small cuts (or incisions) to view the inside of your abdominal wall. Surgeons use specialized instruments and a camera to help remove your kidney.
After your kidney is removed, surgeons flush the blood from your kidney and then cool it down with a special solution so your kidney stays preserved. Surgeons then place your kidney in a new spot in your pelvis, next to your bladder.
Moving the kidney to another part of your body severs—or breaks—your kidney's connection with nerves. This causes the pain to stop.
Treating Kidney Pain With Renal Autotransplant Surgery
Some patients decide to have renal autotransplant surgery to relieve chronic (long-lasting) pain caused by the following conditions:
- Kidney injuries
- Short or injured ureters
- Loin pain hematuria syndrome
- Nutcracker syndrome
If you have kidney stones, renal autotransplant surgery eliminates your ureter pain. Your ureters are narrow tubes where urine travels from your kidneys to your bladder.
If you have kidney stones, the stones also travel through these tiny tubes, causing excruciating pain.
During RAT surgery, surgeons can shorten the length of your ureter. Normal ureters are about 20 cm long. But during surgery, your surgeon will shorten your ureters down to just 3 cm.
Even though your body still produces kidney stones after RAT surgery, these stones have a much shorter distance to travel. You also don't feel them because your nerves have been removed. This can make pain from kidney stones much less intense.
Loin Pain Hematuria Syndrome
Loin pain hematuria syndrome (LPHS) is a condition that causes severe, long-lasting pain around your flanks. Your flanks include your:
- back,
- sides, and
- the upper part of your belly.
Loin pain hematuria syndrome can happen if you have chronic injuries to your kidneys, usually caused by kidney stone disease or other illnesses.
Loin pain hematuria syndrome can also be very difficult to diagnose. Some doctors mistake it for other conditions. To diagnose it correctly, your doctor will first need to rule out other urology and kidney conditions.
Because the pain from LPHS lasts a long time, having this condition can lower your quality of life, making it difficult to work or go to school. Some people with LPHS develop addictions to prescription pain killers.
Treating Loin Pain Hematuria Syndrome With Renal Autotransplant
There are only two treatments for loin pain hematuria syndrome:
- Nephrectomy (removing one or both of your kidneys)
- Renal autotransplant
For many patients with loin pain hematuria syndrome, having RAT surgery is a better option. That's because unlike having a nephrectomy, renal autotransplant lets you keep both of your kidneys.
Renal autotransplant surgery is also successful at making the pain go away. One year after surgery, most patients report pain at one rather than eight (on a one to 10 scale). Their quality of life is hugely improved.
Who's Eligible?
Renal autotransplant is only an option for patients with severe kidney pain that hasn't improved with other treatments. Our multidisciplinary team will review your medical issues and symptoms to help you determine if RAT is the best option.
Living Kidney Donor Program
At U of U Health, we also offer a living kidney donation program. Some patients choose to donate their kidney to this program.
Why Choose University of Utah Health
Because renal autotransplant is only an option for people who've tried other treatments, it's important that your multidisciplinary team encompasses different areas of medicine to make sure that renal autotransplant is the best treatment option for you.
To correctly diagnose loin pain hematuria syndrome or nutcracker syndrome, you will need to see a qualified urologist to make sure your pain isn't being caused by something else. To correctly diagnose loin pain hematuria syndrome or nutcracker syndrome, you will be asked to see our team, including urology, vascular surgery, interventional radiology, and transplant surgery.
Our team is multidisciplinary and has expertise in several different areas. This means you'll receive the correct diagnosis, and this information can help you decide ifrenal autotransplant is the best treatment.
Our multidisciplinary team includes:
- urologists,
- interventional radiologists,
- cardiothoracic surgeons, and
- transplant surgeons.
We have a similar multidisciplinary team at Primary Children's Hospital. Please contact us if your child is under 18 years old and you need RAT treatment.
Testing
Some of the tests you may need will include:
- labwork,
- imaging (CT scans),
- venograms, and
- renal hilar block.
Find a Renal Autotransplant Team Member
Resources
Research
University of Utah Health's multidisciplinary group has multiple ongoing research projects to determine how kidney transplant can help treat kidney disease. We are also actively publishing the results of these studies.
We may invite you to participate.
Renal Transplant Procedure
If you want to learn more, you can watch this video of a live RAT surgery.
Warning: This video contains graphic imagery, including video of live kidneys and other internal organs. Please do not watch this video if you are sensitive to graphic imagery.
Learn More About Renal Autotransplant
Treating Pain with Surgery
No one should have to live with chronic pain. Unfortunately, when pain is being caused by a vital organ, one can be stuck with limited options. Many people end up taking prescribed pain medication for their pain, which isn’t ideal, since it limits day-to-day activities and can become addictive.
Renal Autotransplant to Alleviate Pain, Save Kidneys
Patients that have undergone repeated operations for kidney stones can develop severe, chronic, and inexplicable pain. A remarkable procedure calledrenal autotransplant can ease pain and save functioning kidneys. Learn how the operation works when other options have been exhausted.
