Stating that urinary tract infection in babies can be dangerous, Pediatric Surgeon Prof. Dr. İrfan Serdar Arda, “Urinary tract infection detected in infancy can lead to life-threatening diseases by causing sepsis (general body inflammation) because the immune system has not developed enough yet. For this reason, intravenous administration of the treatment should be preferred.
Pediatric Surgeon Prof. Dr. İrfan Serdar Arda made statements about urinary tract infection in children.
WEAKNESS AND VOMITING CAN BE VISIBLE
Stating that urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the common causes of febrile illness in children, Prof. Dr. İrfan Serdar Arda, “UTI means the presence of the causative agent in the urine. Bacteria are most commonly detected. In addition to high fever, UTI occurs with symptoms such as loss of appetite, weakness, vomiting and reluctance to feed.
ANTIBIOTIC TREATMENT MUST BE APPLIED BETWEEN 7-10 DAYS
Stating that in order to diagnose a urinary tract infection in a child, more than 10 thousand bacteria should be detected in a properly taken urine culture. Dr. Arda said, “A test is performed to determine the antibiotic sensitive to the agent in patients with growth. Antibiotic therapy should be administered between 7-10 days. UTI detected in infancy may cause sepsis (general body inflammation) because the immune system has not developed enough yet. Therefore, intravenous administration of the treatment should be preferred. In older children, oral treatment is sufficient. To understand the usefulness of the treatment, a urine culture should be performed 72 hours after the last antibiotic intake.
ATTENTION TO THESE SYMPTOMS
Talking about the situations that trigger urinary tract infections in children, Prof. Dr. Arda shared the following information: “If a child has had 3 or more proven UTIs in a year, it should be investigated for possible underlying congenital abnormalities of the kidney, urinary tract and bladder. The two most common causes are the backflow of urine from the bladder to the urinary tract (vesicoureteral reflux) and the stenosis that occurs at the exit point of the kidney in the urinary tract (uretero-pelvic stenosis). In both cases, insufficient discharge of urine causes urinary tract infections.”
MAY HAVE KIDNEY REFLUX
Emphasizing that one of the most important causes of recurrent urinary tract infections in children is vesicoureteral reflux, Prof. Dr. İrfan Serdar Arda, “Congenital defect in the valve structure where the urinary tract opens to the bladder causes urine to escape from the bladder to the urinary tract. In advanced reflux, the urine may go up to the kidney and lead to serious loss of function over time. If a child has a history of frequent urinary tract infections, he should be investigated for kidney reflux. A medicated bladder film should be taken for diagnosis. Low-grade reflux may improve over time. These children are followed up with prophylactic antibiotic therapy. In high-grade reflux, one of the closed or open surgical treatment methods is applied.
HOW TO DIAGNOSIS?
Making statements about the diagnosis of uretero-pelvic stenosis, Prof. Dr. İrfan Serdar Arda said, “With ultrasonography, the anterior-posterior diameter of the pool (pelvis) part, which is located at the exit of the kidney and where urine is collected, is measured and put. Intermittent ultrasonographic monitoring is sufficient for enlargements less than 10 mm. In larger, non-reducing or increasing enlargements in the follow-up, scintigraphic examination should be performed to investigate how much the kidney is affected. If there is an increase in diameter and a decrease in kidney function in intermittent follow-ups, surgical treatment is applied.”
