What Are The Symptoms And Treatments For A Kidney Infection?

There is a nice article that appeared on Sep 18, 2008 in the New York Times Health section about Kidney Infections. I have pasted a portion of the article that lists the most standard Exams and Tests used to diagnose Kidney Infections but did not find anything that resembles a chemo-like test.

The complete story is on this link: http://health.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/kidney-infection-pyelonephritis/overview.html

Exams and Tests
A physical exam may show tenderness when the health care provider presses (palpates) the area of the kidney.

Blood culture may show an infection.
Urinalysis commonly reveals white or red blood cells in the urine.
Other urine tests may show bacteria in the urine.
An intravenous pyelogram (IVP) or CT scan of the abdomen may show swollen kidneys. These tests can also help rule out underlying disorders.

Additional tests and procedures that may be done include:

Kidney biopsy
Kidney scan
Kidney ultrasound
Voiding cystourethrogram

Most infections are treated with antibiotics unless there is a clinical trial somewhere. However, kidney infections are a common side effect when patients are undergoing chemotherapy.

Hi Penny. I can only speak to my own experiences with this. I had a kidney infection once. My pain was located mid-way down my back on one of my sides (I don't remember which side). I think I took antibiotics to treat it.

My daughter also had a kidney infection when she was a baby. She had an antibiotic IV in her arm, where they were pumping different types of antibiotics -- with the theory that one of them would work to treat the infection.