Percutaneous sclerotherapy for simple renal cysts in children

Simple renal cysts are rare in children although numbers detected have increased of late owing to ultrasonography. Where the lesion is asymptomatic and the diagnosis is not in doubt, an expectant approach is appropriate, but other circumstances may call for active intervention. We describe their treatment by sclerotherapy. Between the years 1986 and 1990, 2880 renal ultrasound scans were performed on children referred to the Department of Urology. Sixteen renal cysts were identified in 16 patients, an incidence of 0.55%. In two cases symptoms were considered to be related to the cysts and in two further cases ultrasonography could not exclude other lesions. This female child presented at 4 years of age with episodic left hypochondrial pain. Intravenous urography (IVU) suggested a space-occupying lesion within the left upper renal pole, which ultrasonography confirmed as a simple, 4 cm × 4 cm cyst (Fig. 1a).