Some Aspects of Pyelonephritis

Abstract

In a short article it is only possible to outline the important advances in our knowledge of the serious and often fatal disease—pyelonephritis. This pathological entity has been well recognised since the nineteenth century but interest in its clinical aspects has only been aroused since the end of the second world war. Prior to this little attention was paid to pyelonephritis by clinical workers until the classical paper of Longcope (1937). The disease is very protean in its presentation which makes a clear definition of the term pyelonephritis difficult.

Acute or chronic pyelonephritis may arise in normal kidneys by infection with microorganisms or in kidneys structurally altered by prior disease processes or congenital malformations.