Real-World Study on Management Strategies for Upper Urinary Tract Stone Obstruction Complicated by Acute Pyelonephritis

Although current clinical consensus suggests that both percutaneous nephrostomy and retrograde ureteral stenting are effective for decompressing the upper urinary tract, real-world data suggest that retrograde stenting is chosen in the vast majority of cases due to its minimally invasive nature, leaving a critical knowledge gap regarding its specific failure risk factors and the precise indications for primary nephrostomy. Furthermore, a subset of patients who meet drainage criteria are initially treated with antibiotics alone due to non-medical factors such as patient preference or resource constraints, but the safety and failure boundaries of this conservative approach have not been well-documented. This study is designed as a prospective observational cohort study where 1,650 patients will be naturally assigned to treatment cohorts based on the initial clinical decision, including initial retrograde stenting, initial nephrostomy, or initial antibiotic therapy. Participants must present with CT-confirmed unilateral stone obstruction, fever or chills, and signs of systemic inflammation or organ dysfunction to ensure a well-defined study population.

The researchers will record detailed baseline data including stone characteristics, infection severity scores, and a unique physician-based subjective risk assessment to capture the nuances of clinical decision-making logic in real-time. The primary endpoint is the technical success rate of retrograde ureteral stenting, while secondary endpoints include the time to clinical stability, 30-day major complication rates, salvage treatment requirements, and renal function recovery metrics measured by creatinine and glomerular filtration rate changes. To address the expected sample size imbalance between treatment groups, the statistical analysis plan will utilize propensity score matching and inverse probability of treatment weighting to ensure robust comparisons. Ultimately, the study will develop visualization tools such as nomograms to predict the failure of retrograde stenting and conservative treatment, bridging the gap between clinical guidelines and real-world emergency management to improve patient safety and resource allocation.