A kidney infection is a painful and unpleasant illness that usually happens when bacteria travel up from your bladder into one or both of your kidneys.
The medical name for a kidney infection is pyelonephritis. It's different from - and more serious than - cystitis, which is a common infection of the bladder that makes urinating painful.
If treated promptly, a kidney infection doesn't cause serious harm but it will make you feel very unwell. If a kidney infection isn't treated, it can get worse and cause permanent kidney damage.
Often the symptoms of a kidney infection come on quickly, within a few hours, and they can make you feel feverish, shivery, sick and with a pain in your back or side.
Read more about the symptoms of a kidney infection.
When to see your GP
You should see your GP if you have a fever and persistent tummy, lower back or genital pain, or if you notice a change to your usual pattern of urination.
Most kidney infections need prompt treatment with antibiotics to stop the infection from damaging the kidneys or spreading to the bloodstream. You may need painkillers too.
If you're especially vulnerable to the effects of an infection, for example if you have a pre-existing health condition or you're pregnant, you may be admitted to hospital as a precaution and treated with antibiotics that are given by intravenous drip into a vein.
Antibiotic treatment is usually very effective in treating a kidney infection and you should feel completely better after about two weeks.
In rare cases, a kidney infection can cause further problems. These include blood poisoning (sepsis) and a build up of pus in the kidney called an abscess.
Read more about treating a kidney infection and the complications of a kidney infection.
What causes a kidney infection?
A kidney infection usually happens when bacteria, often a type called E. coli, gets into the urethra (the tube through which urine passes out of the body) from the anus and travels up through the bladder into one or both of the kidneys.
Read more about the causes of a kidney infection.
Who's at risk?
Kidney infections are relatively rare. It's estimated that 1 in every 830 people develop a kidney infection each year in the UK.
They can happen at any age, but are much more common in women. In fact, women are six times more likely to get a kidney infection than men. This is because a woman’s urethra is shorter, which makes it easier for bacteria to reach their kidneys.
Younger women are most at risk because they tend to be more sexually active, and having frequent sex increases the chances of getting a kidney infection.
Younger children are also vulnerable to developing kidney infections because they may be born with an abnormality of the urinary tract or have a condition called vesico-ureteric relux, where there is a back flow of urine from the bladder up to the kidneys.
Can kidney infections be prevented?
You can reduce your chances of developing a kidney infection by keeping your bladder and urethra free from bacteria. This can be achieved with simple measures such as drinking plenty of fluids and practising good genital hygiene.
Read more about preventing a kidney infection.
