T. Boyd et al., NONDYSPLASTIC FETAL RENAL HYPOPLASIA ASSOCIATED WITH SEVERE OLIGOHYDRAMNIOS - CLINICAL, PATHOLOGICAL, AND MORPHOMETRIC FINDINGS, PEDIATRIC PATHOLOGY & LABORATORY MEDICINE, 15(3), 1995, pp. 485-501
Two fetuses with severe bilateral renal hypoplasia are described; both
diagnoses were made following elective abortion for oligohydramnios a
nd suspected renal dysplasia. A 20-week female fetus (46,XX) had pulmo
nary hypoplasia and very small kidneys (7% of expected weight) that we
re normally shaped and nondysplastic, with well-formed medullae and me
tanephric blastema and markedly diminished cortices with only rare glo
meruli. A 23-week male fetus (46,XY) had small kidneys (13% of expecte
d weight) that were nondysplastic, normally shaped, and histologically
well organized with moderately decreased numbers of glomeruli. Isolat
ed bilateral renal hypoplasia has not previously been well characteriz
ed in fetuses; the presence of oligohydramnios (both cases) and pulmon
ary hypoplasia (one case) suggests that this finding is associated wit
h impaired fetal renal function and may adversely influence neonatal s
urvival.