Causes, symptoms and treatment of acute pyelonephritis

Pyelonephritis is a fairly common pathology of the kidneys. It has an infectious and inflammatory origin. With pathology, the pelvis and the kidney tissue are affected. Consider what are the symptoms and treatment of acute pyelonephritis.

Description of the pathology

Acute pyelonephritis is the infectious pathology of the parenchyma or renal pelvis, triggered by bacteria. Kidneys in the human body filter blood, producing urine. This fluid is transported through the ureters to the bladder. And from it is introduced through a special channel - the urethra.

Most often, pyelonephritis causes the spread of infection from the bladder. Bacteria penetrate the body through the urethra. Further, they rise into the bladder and subsequently enter the kidneys. This is an upward pathway in the development of pyelonephritis.

Pathology can be provoked by another factor. There is a descending path of development of pathology. As a rule, such a picture is observed in various purulent diseases. In this case, pathogenic bacteria penetrate into the blood and then spread through the body. It is also called hematogenous way.

Infections that get through the blood to the kidneys rarely provoke the inflammatory process. Most often, the disease occurs as a result of a combination of ascending and descending types of pathology.

Pyelonephritis can be:

• One-sided - one kidney is affected;
• Bilateral - the infection covers both kidneys.

In addition, there are two forms of pathology:

• Primary - the focus of infection developed in the urinary system;
• Secondary - pathology arose as a result of other infectious diseases.

Symptoms and treatment of acute pyelonephritis require increased attention. Pathology poses a serious threat to human health and life. The disease can provoke serious complications. Therefore, with pyelonephritis should always refer to the doctors.

Causes of the disease

Before considering the symptoms and treatment of acute pyelonephritis, it is very important to understand what provokes such a pathology. The disease develops as a result of the penetration of pathogenic microorganisms into the tissues of the pelvis and kidneys.

If the hematogenous pathway develops acute pyelonephritis, the causes can lie in various infectious and purulent diseases. Often sources become chronic tonsillitis, furunculosis, osteomyelitis. The main etiological factor of the disease is streptococcus, staphylococcus and other microbes.

The causative agent of the ascending infection pathway is most often the E. coli. Pathology provokes diseases of the urinary tract, which make it difficult to drain urine. It can be stones, congenital anomalies, tumor-like formations, strictures. Often, the withdrawal of urine becomes difficult during pregnancy. As a result, acute pyelonephritis can also develop.

The causes of pathology are most often concluded in the following factors:

• Staphylococcus aureus, streptococcus;
• E. coli;
• Pseudomonas aeruginosa ;
• Adnexitis;
• prostatitis;
• cystitis;
• sinusitis;
• tonsillitis;
• caries;
• cholecystitis;
• bronchitis;
• Stricture of the ureter;
• Stone obstruction;
• adenoma;
• prostate cancer;
• A neurogenic bladder;
• Phimosis;
• Hypothermia of the body;
• dehydration;
• Respiratory infections;
• Persistent fatigue;
• diabetes;
• Fornicative reflux of urine.

Risk groups

Acute pyelonephritis most often develops in the following categories of patients:

1. Older men (after 50 years). Very often such people suffer from adenoma.
2. Toddlers under 7 years. Pathology develops as a result of anatomical features.
3. Representatives of the fair sex of 18-30 years. According to statistics, most often acute pyelonephritis in women. The causes are hidden in physiology. After all, a woman's urethra is much shorter. Therefore, young ladies are more vulnerable to infections of the urinary system. Pathology often develops during pregnancy. And, unfortunately, pyelonephritis increases the risk of premature birth.

Symptomatology of pathology

The disease begins with a sharp increase in temperature. The latter can reach 39 degrees. The patient experiences the strongest chills.

After a while, the following symptoms of acute pyelonephritis occur:

• Painful urination;
• Discomfort in the lower back, which is dull or aching.

In most cases, the doctor is able to diagnose acute pyelonephritis even without examination. Pathology has a rather pronounced symptomatology. Therefore, it is very important to describe as accurately as possible all the signs that cause discomfort, their dynamics and character.

Symptoms of acute pyelonephritis, which must be noted:

• chills;
• Turbid or reddish urine with a sharp, fetid odor;
• Feverish condition;
• Dehydration of the body;
• Strong thirst;
• Sweating;
• Back pain, worse with palpation;
• Tension of the abdominal muscles;
• Increased fatigue;
• Feeling of indisposition;
• headache;
• diarrhea;
• nausea and vomiting;
• Pain in the area of the stomach;
• lack of appetite.

Diagnosis of the disease

Do not forget that the symptoms and treatment of acute pyelonephritis are in the competence of a specialist. Diagnosis of difficulties usually does not cause. It includes the following studies:

1. Physical examination and palpation of the abdomen. The doctor pays attention to the appearance, the frequency of heart contractions, temperature, blood pressure.
2. Inoculation of urine. It allows to determine the kind of bacteria that provoked pyelonephritis.
3. Sowing blood. It is prescribed if the pathology has spread into the blood.
4. Analysis of urine. Gives an idea of the signs of infection. Bacteria and leukocytes found in urine signal a pathological process.
5. Blood test. The study allows to determine the creatinine - a fairly important indicator. Such a product is filtered by the kidneys and must be excreted in the urine. Thus, creatinine allows you to determine the degree of blood purification.
6. Ultrasound. Identifies the main reasons for the delay in the body urine - stones, abscesses, birth defects.
7. CT scan. The study is used only if the ultrasound does not give a complete picture, which occurs in the body of pathology.
8. Gynecological examination. The symptoms of pyelonephritis are very similar to those of some venereal diseases. Therefore, women are recommended to undergo a gynecological examination.

Disease in children

The health of the child is a very fragile thing. Knowingly pediatricians insist on regular examinations. Urinalysis is a study that allows you to identify pyelonephritis in a timely manner.

The root cause of the disease is the virus. Infection can penetrate the body through a sore throat, a sick tooth, a wound on the body. Often pyelonephritis catches crumbs up to five years. At the same time, girls suffer from pathology much more often. Again, all the fault of the physiology.

In addition, the disease may have a cold character. Sometimes even the banal ARVI can provoke the development of pyelonephritis. That's why crumbs for colds are recommended to take urine tests.

Acute pyelonephritis in children very often occurs as a result of:

1. Infections of the organism with enterococcus, E. coli, chlamydia, ureaplasma, mycoplasma.
2. Urinary tract infection. Pathology in this case is accompanied by a dysbacteriosis, inflammation of the sexual (external) organs, intestines.
3. Cystitis.
4. Weakened immunity.
5. Non-compliance with hygiene.
6. Acute viral infections.

In this case, acute pyelonephritis can be observed in infants. At the heart of this disease can lie many factors:

1. Pathology of pregnancy.
2. Infection of the infection through the pustular ulcer, umbilical ring.
3. Congenital defect of renal pelvis. Urine is not excreted from the body, but is again injected into the kidneys.
4. Acute pyelonephritis in children under one year can develop against anemia, rickets, metabolic disorders, and malnutrition.

Symptomatic symptoms in children

If older children can complain about abdominal pain and lower back, the crumbs signal about the disease with the only way available for them - loud crying.

Parents need to pay attention to the following symptoms:

• Painful urination (the baby always cries heavily during them);
• Strong fever accompanied by chills (up to 40 degrees);
• Burning and itching during urination;
• Weakness, complaints of a headache;
• lack of appetite;
• Cyanotic skin tone;
• Signs of intoxication (nausea, vomiting);
• Severe dehydration;
• Lethargy, apathy;
• Babies quickly lose weight.

Pathology in pregnant women

Unfortunately, women in such a delicate situation can face a disease that occurs in an acute form. In this case, according to statistics, pathology is detected in almost 10% of expectant mothers.

What is the cause of the disease? Acute pyelonephritis in pregnant women occurs as a result of an increase in the size of the uterus. The organ exerts pressure on all nearby tissues. Kidneys also suffer considerably. As a result of such compression, urine outflow is difficult. And this leads to the development of an inflammatory process in the kidneys.

In addition, the source of pyelonephritis in a pregnant woman can be a change in the hormonal background, the presence of dental caries, various infections. In this extremely rare pathology is primary. Most often, pyelonephritis is a disease with which a woman lives for a long time and in most cases knows full well about it. But as a result of pregnancy, such a pathology worsens.

Acute pyelonephritis, regardless of the condition and age of the patient, is almost always the same. The disease begins with the following symptoms:

1. A sharp rise in temperature.
2. Drawing characteristic pain in the lower back. Especially it intensifies at night.
3. The presence of chills.
4. Rapid pulse.
5. Painful urination.
6. Strong thread in the lower abdomen.
7. Dark shade of urine. Sometimes with an admixture of blood.
8. Headache, dizziness.
9. Loss of appetite, nausea.

However, in some pregnant women, pathology can also occur without such a characteristic symptomatology. Define the disease can only be laboratory. To diagnose pyelonephritis, a pregnant woman takes urine and blood tests.

Treatment of adults

If a patient develops symptoms of acute pyelonephritis, he should immediately seek medical help. Untimely initiated therapy can lead to the development of serious complications, such as acute renal failure, sepsis, chronic pyelonephritis.

Treatment is stationary. The patient is recommended:

• Bed rest until the end of the fever;
• Drug therapy;
• Sparing diet.

Treatment of acute pyelonephritis with antibiotics begins. With uncomplicated pathology, therapy lasts 10-14 days. Antibiotics are administered intravenously or taken orally. It depends on the patient's condition. The choice of antibiotic is determined exclusively by the doctor. When prescribing the drug, the doctor takes into account laboratory tests on bacteria that provoke pathology, the presence of an allergic reaction, pregnancy. The following preparations are most often used:

• "Penicillin";
• "Trimethoprim";
• "Ciprofloxacin";
• "Cefotaxime";
• "Sulfamethoxazole" ("Bactrim");
• "Cefaclor";
• "Cefuroxime";
• "Ceftazidime";
• "Levofloxacin";
• "Cephalexin."

With pathology that occurs in pregnant women, preference is given to antibiotics of a wide range of effects - nitrofurans. Acute pyelonephritis in women is treated, as a rule, with drugs:

• "Furadonin";
• Furagin.

An excellent preventive for pregnant women are drugs containing nalidixic acid.

Along with antibiotics, the patient is shown herbal therapy. Used plants that differ diuretic and anti-inflammatory effect. Sufficiently in demand in treatment:

• Cranberries;
• nettle;
• Birch leaves;
• chamomile;
• cranberry;
• Rowan;
• Leaves of strawberry;
• St. John's Wort.

Treatment of children

Diagnosis of pathology is seriously hampered in infants. But, despite this, treatment of acute pyelonephritis in children is quite affordable. As well as in adults, therapy is based on:

• Bed rest;
• Special diet;
• Drug therapy.

A warm, plentiful drink is recommended to the child. Older children need to give a diluted compote, a decoction of rose hips, teas. Breastfeeds, in order to stop the loss of fluid, inject special solutions in the form of a dropper.

Drug therapy is based on antibiotics. As a rule, children are recommended drugs in tablets. And only in extreme cases, intravenous or intramuscular injections can be prescribed.

A small patient is prescribed medicines containing penicillins, aminoglycosides or cephalosparins. About 1-2 weeks, this therapy continues. Often this time is enough to stop acute pyelonephritis in children. Treatment continues with uroseptics, which disinfect urine.

Such medicines are:

• Furazidine;
• Oxolinium, pipemidic, nalidixic acid;
• "Co-trimoxazole".

After treatment, children are given phytotea for preventive purposes, which has excellent anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and diuretic properties.

Dietary food

It is extremely dangerous to ignore such a pathology as acute pyelonephritis. The diet is prescribed for all patients along with drug therapy. After all, the disease is associated with the strongest intoxication of the body.

Nutrition involves the introduction into the diet of exceptionally fresh fruits, berries, vegetables. In addition, an important role is played by the correct drinking regimen. The patient should consume at least 2 liters of fluid. This means not only water, but also compotes, teas, juices, decoctions.

After 5-10 days, the patient is assigned a dietary table number 7. This food is based on increased consumption of liquid and the transition to dairy products, vegetables. Take food in small portions. At the same time, it is recommended to eat at least 4 times a day. Kiseli is very useful for the patient. They should be introduced into your diet daily. In addition, an excellent effect will ensure a weekly unloading day. In this case, it is understood that the patient will consume exclusively fresh fruit throughout the day. For the day the patient should eat them in the amount of two kilograms.

On the basis of a diet from a delivery are excluded:

• Broths (meat, fish);
• Smoked products;
• Spices and canned food;
• Mustard and horseradish;
• Sorrel and garlic;
• Coffee drinks;
• pickles;
• alcohol.

Great benefit in the pathology of the kidneys will bring the use of melons - watermelons, zucchini, melons. It's no wonder, because such products are distinguished by a wonderful diuretic effect.

A favorable effect will provide a dog rose. The patient should take infusion of berries and fruits. Teas are made of black currant, mountain ash.

Conclusion

It is very important to fully realize the seriousness of this pathology. Acute pyelonephritis without proper therapy will not disappear without a trace. Once affected kidneys will constantly remind of themselves with discomfort and malaise. As a result, kidney failure may develop. That is why self-medication with such a pathology is completely unacceptable. Extremely dangerous and untreated disease. It can also seriously aggravate pathology.

With adequate therapy, the patient can easily part with the disease forever. But for such a victory will require patience, time and full compliance with the doctor's recommendations.