Pyelonephritis is a fairly common kidney disease. It has an infectious and inflammatory origin. With pathology, the pelvis and its own kidney tissue are affected. Consider the symptoms and treatment of acute pyelonephritis.
Pathology Description
Acute pyelonephritis is an infectious pathology of the parenchyma or renal pelvis, provoked by bacteria. The kidneys in the human body filter blood by producing urine. Such 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 enter the body through the urethra. Then they rise into the bladder and subsequently enter the kidneys. This is the ascending path of pyelonephritis.
Pathology can be triggered by another factor. The downward path of pathology development is known. As a rule, such a picture is observed with various purulent diseases. In this case, pathogenic bacteria enter the bloodstream and are subsequently carried throughout the body. It is also called the hematogenous route.
Infections that pass through the bloodstream to the kidneys rarely provoke an inflammatory process. Most often, the disease occurs as a result of a combination of the ascending and descending types of pathology spread.
Pyelonephritis can be:
- one-sided - one kidney is affected;
- bilateral - the infection covers both kidneys.
In addition, two forms of pathology are distinguished:
- primary - the focus of infection has 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. A disease can cause severe complications. Therefore, with pyelonephritis, you should definitely consult a doctor.
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 due to the penetration of pathogenic microorganisms into the tissues of the pelvis and kidney.
If acute pyelonephritis develops through the hematogenous route, the causes may lie in various infectious and purulent diseases. Often sources are chronic tonsillitis, furunculosis, osteomyelitis. The main etiological factor of the disease is streptococcus, staphylococcus and other microbes.
The causative agent of the ascending path of infection is most often Escherichia coli. Pathology provokes diseases of the urinary tract, which impede the outflow of urine. It can be stones, congenital anomalies, tumor formations, strictures. Often the withdrawal of urine is difficult during pregnancy. As a result, acute pyelonephritis may also develop.
The causes of the pathology most often lie in the following factors:
- staphylococcus, streptococcus;
- E. coli;
- Pseudomonas aeruginosa ;
- adnexitis;
- prostatitis;
- cystitis;
- sinusitis;
- tonsillitis;
- caries;
- cholecystitis;
- bronchitis;
- ureteral strictures;
- stone obstruction;
- adenoma;
- prostate cancer;
- neurogenic bladder;
- phimosis;
- hypothermia of the body;
- dehydration;
- respiratory infections;
- constant overwork;
- diabetes;
- uricinal reflux.
Risk groups
Acute pyelonephritis most often develops in the following categories of patients:
- Elderly men (after 50 years). Very often, such people suffer from adenoma.
- Toddlers under 7 years old. Pathology develops as a result of anatomical features.
- The fair sex is 18-30 years old. According to statistics, most often acute pyelonephritis develops in women. The reasons are hidden in physiology. After all, the woman's urethra is much shorter. Therefore, young ladies are more vulnerable to urinary tract infections. Pathology often develops during pregnancy. And, unfortunately, pyelonephritis increases the risk of premature birth.
Symptoms of pathology
The disease begins with a sharp increase in temperature. In this case, the latter can reach 39 degrees. The patient experiences severe chills.
After some time, the following symptoms of acute pyelonephritis occur:
- painful urination;
- discomfort in the lower back, which is dull or aching in nature.
In most cases, the doctor is able to diagnose acute pyelonephritis even without examination. Pathology has quite pronounced symptoms. Therefore, it is very important to accurately describe all the signs that cause discomfort, their dynamics and character.
Symptoms of acute pyelonephritis, which you should definitely pay attention to:
- chills;
- cloudy or reddish urine with a pungent, offensive odor;
- fever;
- dehydration of the body;
- intense thirst;
- sweating
- lower back pain, aggravated by palpation;
- tension of the abdominal muscles;
- fatigue;
- feeling unwell;
- headache;
- diarrhea;
- nausea and vomiting;
- pain in the stomach;
- lack of appetite.
Diagnosis of the disease
Do not forget that the symptoms and treatment of acute pyelonephritis are the responsibility of a specialist. Diagnosis of difficulties usually does not cause. It includes the following studies:
- Physical examination and palpation of the abdomen. The doctor draws attention to the appearance, heart rate, temperature, blood pressure.
- Sowing urine. Allows you to determine the type of bacteria that provoked pyelonephritis.
- Blood culture It is prescribed if the pathology has spread to the blood.
- Analysis of urine. Provides an indication of signs of infection. Bacteria and white blood cells found in urine signal a pathological process.
- Blood analysis. The study allows you to determine creatinine - a fairly important indicator. Such a product is filtered by the kidneys and should be excreted in the urine. Thus, creatinine allows you to determine the degree of blood purification.
- Ultrasound Identifies the main causes of urinary retention - stones, abscesses, birth defects.
- CT scan. Research is used only if ultrasound does not give a complete picture of the pathology that occurs in the body.
- Gynecological examination. Symptoms of pyelonephritis are very similar to the signs of some sexually transmitted diseases. Therefore, women are recommended to undergo a gynecological examination initially.
Disease in children
Child health is a very fragile thing. No wonder pediatricians insist on regular examinations. Urinalysis is a study that can detect pyelonephritis in a timely manner.
The root cause of the disease is the virus. The infection can penetrate the body through an sore throat, a bad tooth, a wound on the body. Often pyelonephritis overtakes crumbs up to five years. At the same time, girls suffer from pathology much more often. Again, physiology is to blame.
In addition, the disease may have a cold. Sometimes even banal ARVI can provoke the development of pyelonephritis. That is why crumbs with colds are recommended to take a urine test.
Acute pyelonephritis in children very often occurs as a result of:
- Infections of the body with entorococcus, E. coli, chlamydia, ureaplasma, mycoplasma.
- Urinary tract infections. Pathology in this case is accompanied by dysbiosis, inflammation of the genital (external) organs, intestines.
- Cystitis.
- Weakened immunity.
- Non-compliance with hygiene.
- Acute viral infections.
In this case, acute pyelonephritis can be observed in infants. The basis of such a disease can be many factors:
- Pathology of pregnancy.
- Infection through a pustular rash, umbilical ring.
- Congenital defect of the renal pelvis. Urine is not excreted from the body, but is again thrown into the kidneys.
- Acute pyelonephritis in children under one year old can develop against the background of anemia, rickets, metabolic disorders, and malnutrition.
Characteristic symptoms in children
If older children can complain of pain in the abdomen and lower back, then the crumbs signal the disease in the only way available to them - loud crying.
Parents need to pay attention to the following symptoms:
- painful urination (the baby always cries strongly during them);
- severe fever, accompanied by chills (up to 40 degrees);
- burning and itching during urination;
- weakness, headache complaints;
- lack of appetite;
- bluish skin tone;
- signs of intoxication (nausea, vomiting occurs);
- severe dehydration;
- lethargy, lethargy;
- babies lose weight quickly.
Pathology in pregnant women
Unfortunately, women in such a delicate position may encounter an acute illness. Moreover, according to statistics, pathology is detected in almost 10% of expectant mothers.
What is the reason for the development of the disease? Acute pyelonephritis in pregnant women occurs as a result of an increase in the size of the uterus. The organ puts pressure on all nearby tissues. The kidneys are also significantly affected. As a result of such compression, the outflow of urine is impeded. And this leads to the development of the inflammatory process in the kidneys.
In addition, a source of pyelonephritis in a pregnant woman may be a change in the hormonal background, the presence of dental caries, and various infections. In this case, pathology is extremely rare. Most often, pyelonephritis is a disease with which a woman lives for a long time and in most cases is well aware of it. But as a result of pregnancy, such a pathology exacerbates.
Acute pyelonephritis, regardless of the condition and age of the patient, manifests itself almost always the same. The disease begins with the following symptoms:
- A sharp increase in temperature.
- Drawing characteristic pain in the lumbar region. It is especially amplified at night.
- The presence of chills.
- Rapid pulse.
- Painful urination.
- Strong pain in the lower abdomen.
- Dark shade of urine. Sometimes mixed with blood.
- Headache, dizziness.
- Loss of appetite, nausea.
However, in some pregnant women, pathology can proceed without such characteristic symptoms. The disease can only be determined by laboratory means. To diagnose pyelonephritis in a pregnant woman, a urine and blood test is taken.
Adult treatment
If the patient has symptoms of acute pyelonephritis, you should immediately seek medical help. Untimely started therapy can lead to the development of serious complications, such as acute renal failure, sepsis, chronic pyelonephritis.
The 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 condition of the patient. The choice of antibiotic is determined solely by the doctor. When prescribing the drug, the doctor takes into account laboratory tests for bacteria that provoke pathology, the presence of an allergic reaction, and pregnancy. The most commonly used drugs are:
- "Penicillin";
- "Trimethoprim";
- "Ciprofloxacin";
- Cefotaxime;
- Sulfamethoxazole (Bactrim);
- "Cefaclor";
- "Cefuroxime";
- Ceftazidime;
- Levofloxacin;
- Cephalexin.
With the pathology that arose in pregnant women, preference is given to antibiotics of a wide spectrum of exposure - nitrofurans. Acute pyelonephritis in women is usually treated with drugs:
An excellent prophylactic for pregnant women is medication containing nalidixic acid.
Along with antibiotics, the patient is shown herbal therapy. Plants that are diuretic and anti-inflammatory are used. Enough in demand in the treatment of:
- lingonberry;
- nettle;
- birch leaves;
- chamomile;
- cranberry;
- Rowan;
- strawberry leaves;
- St. John's wort
Treating children
Diagnosis of pathology is seriously difficult in infants. But, despite this, the treatment of acute pyelonephritis in children is quite affordable. As in adults, therapy is based on:
- bed rest;
- special diet;
- drug therapy.
The child is recommended a warm, plentiful drink. Older children need to be given diluted compote, a rosehip decoction, and teas. Breasts, in order to stop the loss of fluid, are injected with special solutions in the form of a dropper.
Drug therapy is based on antibiotics. As a rule, tablets are recommended for children. And only in extreme cases, intravenous or intramuscular injections can be prescribed.
A small patient is prescribed medications 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 that disinfect urine.
These medicines are:
- "Furazidine";
- oxolinium, pipemidic, nalidixic acid;
- "Co-trimoxazole."
After treatment, children are prescribed prophylactic tea, which has excellent anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and diuretic properties.
Diet food
It is extremely dangerous to ignore such a pathology as acute pyelonephritis. A diet is prescribed to all patients along with drug therapy. After all, the disease is associated with severe intoxication of the body.
Nutrition involves entering into the diet exclusively fresh fruits, berries, vegetables. In addition, the correct drinking regimen plays a big role. The patient should drink at least 2 liters of fluid. This implies not only water, but also fruit drinks, teas, juices, decoctions.
After 5-10 days, the patient is assigned a dietary table No. 7. Such nutrition is based on increasing fluid intake and switching to dairy products and vegetables. Eat should be in small portions. At the same time, it is recommended to eat at least 4 times a day. Very good for the patient jelly. They should be added to your diet daily. In addition, a weekly fasting day provides an excellent effect. In this case, it is understood that the patient will eat exclusively fresh fruits throughout the day. For a day, the patient should eat them in the amount of two kilograms.
Based on a diet, the following are excluded from nutrition:
- broths (meat, fish);
- smoked meats;
- spices and canned food;
- mustard and horseradish;
- sorrel and garlic;
- coffee drinks
- pickles;
- alcohol.
The use of gourds - watermelons, zucchini, melons, will greatly benefit in kidney pathologies. It is not surprising, because such products are distinguished by an excellent diuretic effect.
A rosehip will provide a beneficial effect. The patient should take an infusion of berries and fruits. Useful teas from blackcurrant, 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 the affected kidneys will constantly remind themselves of 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 the pathology.
With adequate therapy, the patient easily says goodbye to the disease forever. But such a victory will require patience, time and full compliance with the doctor's recommendations.