A 25-year-old man comes to the college clinic with fever of 101° F and pain in the flank radiating into the thigh and genitals. He complains of nausea. The nurse recognizes these com-plaints as being indicative of:

Question

a. urethritis.
b. pyelonephritis.
c. glomerulonephritis.
d. cystitis.

Answer 1

B
Acute pyelonephritis is an infection of the kidneys. It is thought to occur when bacteria (such as Escherichia coli) from a bladder infection travel up the ureters to infect the kidneys. A frequent cause of pyelonephritis is an obstruction, causing stasis of urine and stones that cause irritation of the tissue. Both situations provide an environment in which bacteria can grow. When bacteria enter the renal pelvis, inflammation and infection occur. Pyelonephritis causes nausea and vo-miting, flank pain, temperature elevation with chills, headache, and malaise. Urethritis and cysti-tis often cause dysuria. Glomerulonephritis commonly occurs about 2 to 3 weeks after a group A beta-hemolytic streptococcal infection, such as "strep throat" or impetigo. The patient with acute glomerulonephritis usually becomes suddenly ill with fever, chills, flank pain, widespread edema, puffiness about the eyes, visual disturbances, and marked hypertension.