The role of radiology in urinary tract infection in children

Abstract

Of 758 children examined by uroradiography at the Transvaal Memorial Hospital for Children, 232 (30%) had been referred for the diagnosis of urinary tract infection. The incidence of radiological anomaly or abnormality in these children was an overall 30%; in the first 3 years of life this figure rose to 40%. Radiological investigation of these children should be undertaken routinely. Excretory urography alone is a satisfactory screening procedure in children over the age of 3 years; under this age, formal voiding cysto-urethrography is of immense importance. The incidence of 70% of underlying radiologically detectable abnormalities associated with Pseudomonas infection was statistically significantly higher than the 30% found in association with all other infecting organisms.