Laparoscopic nephrectomy for emphysematous pyelonephritis.

Emphysematous pyelonephritis is a serious suppurative infection of the renal and extrarenal tissues. Controversies exist surrounding the appropriate management of this life-threatening condition with advocates for both medical management alone and percutaneous drainage combined with nephrectomy. The laparoscopic approach for nephrectomy is quickly becoming the standard of care for benign disease of the kidney and low-stage renal cancers. We …