Migratory lobar nephronia

Lobar nephronia or focal bacterial nephritis is a pre-abscess stage of localized cellulitis and has been shown to represent a focal imaging manifestation of what is frequently a diffuse renal process. To the best of our knowledge, although multi-focal bacterial nephritis has been described, a migratory pattern has not been observed. This report describes a previously healthy 32-year-old woman with pathologically proven lobar nephronia that exhibited a migratory pattern on serial computed tomography (CT) and a prolonged course on antibiotic therapy. Possible etiologies for this unusual course, along with the CT, sonographic and needle biopsy features of this disease are discussed.