[Xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis: clinical, radiological and pathologic characteristics].

Objectives: Xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis is an atypical chronic infection which simulates a malignant renal neoplasia, definitive diagnosis of which is obtained by pathologic study after surgical removal. In this paper we analyze our experience and compare it to that reported on the literature.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study of cases of xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis diagnosed in the period from January 1945 to December 2000 at the Institute of Neoplastic Diseases, analyzing clinical, radiological, and surgical features documented in the medical records.