What is Infection?
Infection is all about pathogens affecting various tissues of your body and can lead you to illness or we can also say medical conditions. Pathogens are any organism or agent that has the ability to turn into disease. You can also term pathogens as germs. Furthermore, the severity of infectious medical conditions depends upon how much the pathogens have spread and grown in that particular tissue. Also, you can describe infection by understanding the following characteristics:
- Pathogens invading the tissues
- Multiplication of pathogens in or on the tissue
- Production of toxins by pathogens
- Host tissue reactions to the infectious agents
There is a wide range of pathogens in form of bacteria, fungi, parasites, and viruses that can lead to infection. Signs like inflammation can be a response to infection in mammalian hosts. According to studies, 17% of the population worldwide faces deaths due to infectious diseases.
What are some examples of major Infectious Diseases?
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- HIV
- Rhinovirus
- Rabies virus
- Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus
- Candida
- Strep throat
- Escherichia coli
- Malaria
- Kidney infection
- Salmonella
- Pneumonia
- Otitis media
- Food poisoning
- Eye infection
- Urinary tract infection (UTI)
- Chickenpox
What is a kidney Infection?
Kidneys are organs that are responsible for doing functions like:
- Controlling various body fluid volume
- Maintaining and controlling fluid osmolality
- Keeping up with the acid-base balance in the body
- Control several types of electrolyte concentrations inside our bodies
- Remove toxins
- Filtering blood volume in the glomerulus
- Secrete and absorb various chemical substances
- Cpnvert Vitamin D to Calcitriol
- Synthesize hormones like renin and erythropoietin
Hence, the Kidney is an important organ of our body and any harm or damage can lead to severe consequences to our body system. Kidney infection is also known in medical terms as Pyelonephritis. Moreover, you can understand Kidney infection as a type of infection, specifically, Urinary tract infection (UTI). Kidney infection causes kidney inflammation, fever, and a slight amount of tenderness.
Kidney infection can occur on either one of the kidneys or both kidneys. If any part of the Kidney part gets germs then it can lead to Kidney infections. In some cases, Kidney infections can be also painful but not serious. Also, a Kidney infection can occur if any part of the Kidney like the Ureter, Bladder, or Urethra gets an infection as it can travel up to the Kidney.
Moreover, if you don’t diagnose and treat your Kidney infection problem then it can cause life-threatening problems. You may also develop serious pus around the kidney, and sepsis. In some cases, it also turns into Kidney failure. So, you must seek professional help who can lead you to a solution and treatment for Kidney infection.
What are the Signs and Symptoms of Kidney Infection?
Apart from more inflammation, there are other symptoms of Kidney infection that one may have. If you experience any of the signs given below then do not wait for it to become worse, contact your doctor for help. Moreover, here is a list of Kidney infection symptoms as follows:

- High fever
- Flank tenderness
- Nausea
- Burning sensation while urinating
- Frequent urination
- Painful urination experience
- Abdominal pain
- Vomiting
- Sudden unusual weight loss
- Malaise
- Loss of appetite
- Bloody urine
- Other low urinary tract symptoms
- AA amyloidosis
How long does a Kidney Infection occur in a person?
If you leave this condition in the hope to get normal on its own, then Kidney infection will worsen. Usually, it is said that people feel better after 2 weeks, as soon as they get a proper diagnosis and treatment of this problem. Also, people who are elderly may take some time to recover from this problem. Moreover, you should contact your doctor if you show no signs of improvement within 24 hours or a few days.
What are the Causes of Kidney Infection?
Cases of kidney infection mostly occur because of bacterial infection. Organisms present with the bowel or bacteria known as Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis cause kidney infections most of the time. Furthermore, these infections start from the urinary tract and gradually reach to Kidney causing infection in the Kidneys.
You may also get Kidney infections due to Coliform bacteria and enterococci from poor hospitals or other healthcare facilities. Also, there are other species of Klebsiella along with Pseudomonas aeruginosa that can lead you to this condition in rare cases. Furthermore, E. coli forms IBCs (intracellular bacterial communities) maturing them into biofilms by invading the bladder’s umbrella cells. So, it further leads to UTIs and Kidney infections.
Other causes of Kidney Infections are:
- Structural abnormality of the urinary tract
- Vesicoureteral refluc
- Kidney stones
- Ureteral stents
- Urinary tract catheterization
- Nephrostomy
- Neurogenic bladder
- Prostate illness
- Immunodeficiency
- HIV
- Diabetes mellitus
- Exposure to spermicide or using it
- Genetic history
What is the treatment method for Kidney Infection?
Before getting straight into the treatment of kidney infection, your doctor will run a few tests that may include:
- Urine Analysis
- Urine culture
- Ultrasound
- CT scan
- Voiding cystourethrogram
- Dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) scintigraphy
- Digital rectal exam for males
Doing some lifestyle habit changes also with antibiotic medications will help you treat kidney infection problems easily. Moreover, patients start to feel better before or after 2 weeks when they get a proper diagnosis and treatment from medical professionals. Furthermore, your kidney infection severity, duration, and underlying causes are some factors that your doctor looks into before instructing you on solutions and prescribing medicines.
Home remedies for Kidney Infection also include:
- Maintain your hydration levels
- Drink juices that also include cranberry, apple, and parsley
- Also, try to avoid or quit smoking
- Moreover, take Vitamin C
- Also, go for an Epsom salt bath
- Instead of squatting on your toilet seat, sit on it for better excretion
- Also, get some extra rest
- You can also use a heating pad on painful regions for pain relief
- Use over-the-counter pain relief such as acetaminophen
- Stop using spermicides
- Prevent spermicide exposure
- Also, prevent exposure to deodorants or douches
- Avoid or quit using condoms with spermicides
- Also, use condoms with good lubrication
- Do not avoid or extend urination
- Also, try to pee after sex
- Maintain proper genital and anal hygiene
- Wipe your front and back properly after peeing or poop
Herbal medicines to treat Kidney Infection include:
- Gokshura/Tribulus Terrestris
- Guggulu
- Triphala
- Trikatu
- Musta
- Amalaki
- Guduchi
- Combinations of the above medicines
- Niruhabasti
- Varunadikvath
- Chandraprabha
- Cystone
- Cinnamomum cassia
- Azadirachta Indica/NeemOcimum sanctum/tulsi
- Garlic
- Onion
- Pepper
- Cabbage
- Olive oil
- Rice water/Tandulodaka
- Dhansak Hima
- Amla juice
- Punarnava
- Varun
- Chandan
Here is a list of medicinal treatments for Kidney Infection:
- ciprofloxacin
- cefalexin
- co-amoxiclav
- trimethoprim
- paracetamol
- acetaminophen
- Acupuncture
- Homeopathy
Conclusion
Infection is all about pathogens affecting various tissues of your body and can lead you to illness or we can also say medical conditions. Moreover, you can also term infectious disease as a communicable or transmissible disease. Additionally, the Kidney is an important organ of our body and any harm or damage can lead to severe consequences to our body system.
Kidney infection is also known in medical terms as Pyelonephritis. Moreover, you can understand Kidney infection as a type of infection, specifically, Urinary tract infection (UTI). Furthermore, Kidney infection causes kidney inflammation, fever, and a slight amount of tenderness. If you experience any of the signs given above then do not wait for it to become worse, contact your doctor for help.
Usually, it is said that people feel better after 2 weeks, as soon as they get a proper diagnosis and treatment of this problem. Also, people who are elderly may take some time to recover from this problem. Cases of kidney infection mostly occur because of bacterial infection. Organisms present in the bowel or bacteria known as Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis cause kidney infections most of the time. Furthermore, doing some lifestyle habit changes also with antibiotic medications will help you treat kidney infection problems easily.
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