The Finding of Chronic Pyelonephritis in Males and Females at Autopsy

THE pathogenesis of histologically proved chronic pyelonephritis is frequently obscure. Although pyelonephritis has been defined as "the pathologic alterations (in the kidney) which occur subsequent to the multiplication of pathogenic bacteria,"1 patients with this diagnosis commonly do not give a history of urinary-tract infection and may have urine cultures that are repeatedly sterile. In addition, since these pathologic alterations may be found in kidneys with other diseases, their mere presence does not demonstrate that bacteria contributed to their development. Thus, it is to be expected that observers would disagree whether a given lesion should be called pyelonephritis since some lesions . . .