European Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine

Background: This study was conducted to compare intrarenal arterial Doppler in patients with obstructed and non-obstructed kidneys and to assess the diagnostic value of this procedure in cases of renal obstruction. Methods: This was a hospital-based prospective study conducted among 50 patients with symptoms of acute renal obstruction who attended the Department of Radiodiagnosis at Krishna Rajendra Hospital attached to Mysore Medical College and Research Institute, Mysore, over a period of 18 months from June 2021 to November 2022 after obtaining clearance from the institutional ethics committee and written informed consent from the study participants. Results: The mean age of the patients was 36.9 ± 14.2 years. The mean RI value of the right obstructed kidney was 0.74 and the non-obstructed kidney was 0.62, and the left obstructed kidney was 0.74 and the non-obstructed kidney was 0.62. The p-value showed statistical significance. The mean DELTA RI between obstructed and non-obstructed was 0.12. Sensitivity: 96.3%, specificity: 91.3%, positive predictive value: 92.86%, negative predictive value: 95.45%, and diagnostic accuracy: 94%. Conclusion: The Doppler USG has an overall 85% sensitivity and 96.3% specificity in identifying acute renal obstruction when the discriminating threshold value of RI≥0.70 is used. The accuracy of ultrasonography in the evaluation can be increased by using renal Doppler recordings, which can demonstrate altered renal perfusion prior to pelvicalyceal system dilatation. This makes Doppler studies a viable diagnostic tool in cases of suspected acute unilateral renal obstruction. For patients who report acute renal colic, Doppler US should thus be used as an adjuvant test in addition to gray-scale sonography.