Emphysematous pyelonephritis. Report of two cases

Abstract

Emphysematous pyelonephritis is considered an unusual clinical entity. It is an acute necrotizing infection, with gas formation in the renal parenchyma, the collector system and/or perinephric space. Diabetic population is more prone to this kind of pyelonephritis, but cases of emphysematous pyelonephritis have been described in patients with urinary tract obstruction in absence of Diabetes mellitus.    On 69 to 97 % of the cases, the germ implied in the disease genesis is Escherichia coli, followed by Klebsiella pneumonia, that are responsible for a disease having a high impact on the diabetic patients´ morbidity and mortality. Knowing this clinical entity allows arriving to a precocious diagnosis with the aim of establishing the most suitable treatment contributing to a better patients´ survival. Tomographic studies guide in the diagnosis, facilitate the option of a conserving treatment, and when it is required a correct invasive treatment individualized according to the possible cause generating it.