Emphysematous pyelonephritis: surgical implications. Emphysematous pyelonephritis in patients with diabetes mellitus is increasingly recognised as a disease requiring urgent and aggressive treatment. We present 3 cases of emphysematous pyelonephritis; 1 patient required percutaneous nephrostomy followed by nephroureterectomy but the other 2 were successfully managed with antibiotics and control of diabetes. Diagnosis was confirmed by sequential imaging techniques which demonstrated an inflammatory renal mass associated with gas and fluid. 