Pyelonephritis

Pyelonephritis is an acute UTI (Urinary Tract Infection) of the kidney.

It originates from the complication o cystitis. The bacteria from the bladder can spread to the kidney through the ureter. It is the cause of kidney infection.

Symptoms are lumbar pain and high fever.

The diagnosis and treatment must be immediate to have a full recovery. Delay may result in unpredictable progression.

Chronic pyelonephritis is less common and is a complication of dysfunctions like reflux of urine from the bladder to the kidney or chronic kidney obstructions.

We define uncomplicated pyelonephritis as when it occurs in non-pregnant, pre-menopausal women without relevant urologic abnormalities or other chronic diseases.

Causes of pyelonephritis

Acute pyelonephritis is a complication of lower UTI (urinary tract infection), usually cystitis. The bacterial count increases in the bladder and can spread up through the ureter into the kidney.

The risk of kidney infection increases:

• In females: UTIs are more frequent in women;
• During pregnancy;
• In obstructed urinary tract (stone, prostate enlargement);
• If the immune system is weak;
• In bladder voiding dysfunction (neurologic)
• In chronic bladder catheterization;
• In vesicoureteral reflux.

Symptoms

• Abdominal pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Pus or blood in the urine (hematuria)
• Urine that smells bad or is cloudy

Diagnosis

Usually requires immediate IV antibiotic treatment. Complicated infection often requires kidney drainage to decrease the back-pressure related to obstruction (insertion of a tube in the skin of the lumbar area, directly into the kidney; insertion of an internal conduit in the ureter).

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