Pyelonephritis: symptoms, causes and diagnosis

Pyelonephritis is a nonspecific inflammatory process that affects the kidneys and disrupts their basic functions. To date, this disease is the most common among all inflammatory diseases of the genitourinary system. Pyelonephritis can occur in people regardless of their age. However, young women and girls under the age of 8 are most prone to inflammation of the kidneys. Quite often pyelonephritis, the symptoms of which are different, appears in pregnant women. This is due to the fact that at this time there is a hormonal shift, and the pregnant uterus squeezes the ureters.

Why are women most prone to pyelonephritis? This phenomenon is promoted by the anatomical features of the structure of the female urethra, which allow the infection to ascend through the bladder.

Pyelonephritis, the symptoms of which are diverse, is both an independent disease and a complication caused by the following factors: urolithiasis, diabetes, urinary system tumors or gynecological problems.

Causes of pyelonephritis

The main cause of pyelonephritis is an infection that causes an inflammatory process.

1. Hormonal imbalance caused by pregnancy, menpause, or prolonged intake of contraceptives.
2. Immunodeficiency states - defects of the immune system, diabetes mellitus, etc.
3. Diseases that precede the inflammation of the kidneys.
4. Infringement of outflow of urine - stones, tumors, anomalies of development of kidneys or a ureter.

Symptoms of pyelonephritis

There are two forms of the disease - chronic and acute pyelonephritis. Let's look at their main symptoms.

Has acute pyelonephritis symptoms are as follows:

• Fever, chills;
• Severe pain during urination;
• Back pain;
• Increased blood pressure.

In some cases, the disease may take a long time to go and asymptomatic. Most people explain the drawing pain in the lower back like a sign of osteochondrosis. Yes, and high blood pressure try to treat yourself. And only a regular increase in blood pressure, which is not amenable to medical correction, suggests the idea of visiting a doctor.

Much more difficult with chronic pyelonephritis. It can be hidden for many years, and only the analysis of urine helps to detect the disease. Chronic pyelonephritis, whose symptoms are of a similar type with an acute disease, is treated in a hospital.

Diagnosis of the disease

Pyelonephritis, the symptoms of which we examined, can be detected only after the analysis of urine. Proper collection of it helps to prevent the entry of germs from the genitals. First of all, you need to wash thoroughly and collect in a boiled jar an average portion of urine.

If after the study it turned out that the leukocytes exceed the maximum permissible standards, then they collect the crop, which reveals the causative agent of the infection. With the help of this analysis, its characteristics and sensitivity to antibacterial drugs are evaluated. The combination of tests and ultrasound will help the doctor choose the appropriate treatment plan.

Treatment of the disease

Usually the treatment is under the supervision of doctors in the hospital. Not only antibacterial agents are used here, but also innovative methods of non-surgical intervention. With the help of modern equipment, you can remove the abscess, improve the functioning of the ureters, stimulate the outflow of urine or crush stones.

For the treatment and prevention of pyelonephritis at the moment there are quite a lot of sets of kidney tea, soluble bags and herbal plates. In summer, it is recommended to use a watermelon diet. You can also drink a glass of slightly alkaline mineral water a day, such as Slavyanskaya.

Observe all the prescribed doctor's recommendations that will help cope with the disease. Remember pyelonephritis, the symptoms of which we have considered, it is completely curable, but it needs a lot of time to eliminate it.