Acute pyelonephritis in adults: for a unified patient care

Pyelonephritis is a frequent infection mostly found in women. Urine must be collected for culture before beginning antibiotherapy. The predominant pathogen identified is E coli. Ciprofloxacin may be used right away if the E. coli susceptibility to this antibiotic is at least 90% in the local population. Otherwise, a dose of ceftriaxone or amikacin (outside pregnancy) should be administered. For inpatient care, initial treatment is different according to clinical severity. In case of complication, specialists of urology and infectiology should be consulted. An antibiotic de-escalation should be considered if permitted by the clinical evolution and the antibiogram; in favor of amoxicillin in women and ciprofloxacin in men. In case of history of ESBL infection or carriage, the empirical treatment should be adapted.