Acute Pyelonephritis Today

Abstract

Currently, the most accepted imaging technique that the scientific community considers as the most sensitive and specific, to diagnose an acute pyelonephritis (APN) and its complications when imaging support is needed is the Computed Tomography (CT)[i]. Although alternative techniques that not require ionizing radiations like contrast enhanced ultra-sonography (CEUS) and magnetic resonance (MRI) are becoming always more important, also thanks to the fact that the major part of APN patients are children and women in fertile age. The problem of exposure to ionizing radiation is a very real issue so in the most recent pediatric guidelines, CT is not even mentioned and is substituted by the only ultrasound examination or in some cases by MRI[ii] (Fig. 1).