Marija Ramanauskaitė¹, Gabrielė Petlinskaitė¹, Emilija Stulginskaitė¹

¹Faculty of Medicine of the Medical Academy of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences

Abstract

Lower urinary tract infections result in more and more patients being hospitalized each year, and almost all of them have a pathophysiological chance of developing pyelonephritis, which is clinically termed as an upper urinary tract infection. Pyelonephritis is an inflammation of the renal parenchyma caused by bacteria traveling ascendantly from the urethra, bladder, or ureters. The most important task for the doctor is to distinguish between upper and lower urinary tract infections. The best means of differentiating these pathologies are careful collection of medical history and physical examination skills, they also allow the identification of other pathologies. When diagnosing, it is important to know the test methods, but also to have a thorough knowledge of the basic clinical triad of pyelonephritis: side pain, fever, and nausea. In this article, we will review the etiology, epidemiology, clinic, diagnostics, and treatment options of pyelonephritis.

Keywords: pyelonephritis, upper urinary tract infection, clinic, diagnosis.