Urine alpha-1-microglobulin reliability in the diagnosis of pyelonephritis: a systematic review

Article type Systematic review article Introduction:Pyelonephritis is known as kidney inflammation due to bacterial infection which should be diagnosed and treated promptly. In this article, we decided to systematically review the diagnostic value and reliability of evaluating urine excretion low molecular weight protein alpha-1-microglobulin (A1M). Methods: PubMed and Scopus were searched for the relevant articles about the efficacy of urine alpha-1-micriglobulin assays in the diagnosis of pyelonephritis in children. The search strategy was microglobulin AND pyelonephritis. No language and date limitations were included in this review. Results: A total of 16 articles were retrieved from PubMed and 23 articles from Scopus. After studying the abstracts, only 5 articles were selected, which specifically studied the efficacy of alpha-1-micrglobulin in the diagnosis of pyelonephritis in children. Discussion: A1M is not an acute phase protein but its concentration alters in several clinical conditions. Conclusion: Evaluating the urine concentration of A1M is a noninvasive and cost effective strategy with the diagnostic capability for urinary tract disorders such as early recognition of tubular damages during pyelonephritis.