A novel oral anticoagulant, dabigatran, in acute renal infarction

Acute renal infarction (ARI), which is a rare cause of flank pain, results from interruption in the blood supply of renal tissue. The severity of its clinic depends on the width of the affected part of the kidney. It is often impossible to find the underlying cause (1, 2). Thromboembolic states related to cardiac diseases, such as atrial fibrillation, rheumatic mitral stenosis, endocarditis, and left ventricular wall aneurysms, are the major causes, whereas occlusion of the renal artery following endovascular aortic or renal intervention, renovascular diseases, malignant hypertension, paradoxical cardiac emboli associated with atrial septal defects, polyarteritis nodosa, and cocaine have also been reported as rare causes in the etiology (3-5). In the literature, the incidence of ARI lies within a range of 0.007%-1.4% (1-5). Herein, we present a patient with ARI and its treatment with a novel oral anticoagulant, dabigatran.