Pyelonephritis in children. Symptoms and treatment

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Pyelonephritis in children is an inflammatory disease that is very common and is one of the most common infectious diseases in babies after respiratory diseases.

The term "pyelonephritis" is a fusion of the words pyelos, which means "trough", and nephros, which means kidney. Therefore, the name reflects the essence - an inflammatory process affecting the renal pelvis and kidney tissues. In young children, it is quite difficult to establish exactly where the lesion is localized, so they most often talk about "urinary tract infection".

Pyelonephritis in children, types of disease

The disease is provoked by intestinal microorganisms such as cocci and coli bacteria (staphylococcus aureus, streptococcus, intestinal escherichia, enterococcus, proteus and others).

Most often isolated mixed microflora. Urinary tract infection causes pyelonephritis. The causes of this disease in children and adults are a disturbed outflow of urine, its reverse reflux (reflux).

Pyelonephritis in children can be primary and secondary. Primary develop with a normal structure of urologicalorgans. Secondary are observed in children with congenital pathology of the bladder, ureters and kidneys. The lesion can be unilateral or bilateral. The disease is acute, chronic or recurrent.

Acute pyelonephritis with adequate treatment ends with recovery in less than 2 months. In the chronic course of the disease, symptoms persist for up to six months and exacerbations of the disease are periodically observed.

Pyelonephritis in children, symptoms

Common characteristic symptoms include fever (up to 39 degrees), weakness, lack of appetite, nausea. An increase in temperature is accompanied by sweating and chills. There is pain in the lumbar region.

Often the disease is accompanied by cystitis or urethritis. In some cases, pyelonephritis in children is asymptomatic. Parents should pay attention to the child's rapid fatigue, mood swings, pallor, frequent visits to the toilet at night.

How to treat pyelonephritis in children?

In the acute period of the disease, various drugs are used (sulfanilamide, antibiotics, nitrofuran, nitroxoline), which are prescribed by the attending physician. In a chronic disease, antibiotic treatment is carried out in courses, under the control of the patient's general condition and his tests. If the cause of pyelonephritis are anomalies of the anatomical structure, the doctor decides on the need for surgical intervention.

The use of phytotherapy, homeopathic remedies andimmunomodulatory drugs. After suffering pyelonephritis, it is recommended to be systematically observed by a specialist doctor. At the same time, an ultrasound examination is carried out - once every six months or a year, as well as regular testing.

It must be remembered that pyelonephritis in children often occurs in the presence of a chronic focus of infection. It can be inflammation of the internal organs, and the flu, and even ordinary caries. At the same time, pathogenic bacteria are carried through the blood from the lesion to the kidneys and cause inflammation in them.