title: Variable symptomatology in idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis.
abstract: Idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis is uncommon enough to be placed low down on a list of differential diagnoses of any problem facing a general surgeon in a district hospital. In this paper, 4 cases of retroperitoneal fibrosis are described, all of whom presented within a 5-year period to the same surgeon; each described a different symptomatology. This paper serves to reiterate the diversity of presenting features in retroperitoneal fibrosis and to demonstrate that this condition may not be as rare as is widely believed.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006801:Humans; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012185:Retroperitoneal Fibrosis / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D014513:Ureter / Q000601:surgery; D014517:Ureteral Obstruction / Q000209:etiology