Journal Reviews
Does stable or decreasing hydronephrosis on ultrasound lead to stable or improved function on diuretic renography?
Antenatal hydronephrosis is noted in approximately 1% of all pregnancies. Persistent renal obstruction may lead to progressive loss of renal function. Renal ultrasound (USS) is the preferred modality for diagnosis and monitoring of paediatric hydronephrosis as it is non-invasive, non-ionising,...
Endoscopic injection of bulking agent for recurrent paediatric epididymitis
Paediatric recurrent epididymitis is frequently observed in several urogenital conditions, and may result in deterioration of long-term fertility. The management of recurrent epididymitis is still a therapeutic challenge for paediatric urologists, and as yet there is no consensus for treatment....
Redo orchidopexy
Cryptorchidism, or the undescended testis, is perhaps the most common genital anomaly in males. Historical success rates are approximately 90% depending on the preoperative location and technique used. Iatrogenic cryptorchidism can also occur in up to 2% of cases following...
Should we let sleeping children lie?
Alarm therapy (AT) is a first line-treatment for nocturnal enuresis (NE) conditioning the child to wake in response to an auditory stimulus when wetting begins. It is currently unclear whether waking children and guiding them to urinate when the alarm...
Bladder debris on ultrasound as a predictor for positive urine culture
One of the common ultrasound findings in children who undergo renal tract evaluation is ‘debris in the bladder’. The aetiology of bladder debris is varied and the likelihood that urinary debris represents positive urine culture is debatable. The authors of...
Upper pole access is safe and effective for paediatric percutaneous nephrolithotomy
Upper pole access for percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) provides a straight access tract to the ureter with easier placement of a guidewire, good exposure of the pelvis and upper ureter, and comfortable manipulations for the treatment of staghorn, large upper caliceal,...
Characteristics of testicular tumours in prepubertal children
It is well known that testicular tumours in children occur in one of two peaks. Firstly, in the first four years of life where a third to half of these tumours are benign and secondly during puberty where there is...
Is surgical antibiotic prophylaxis necessary for paediatric orchiopexy?
With the rise of resistant organisms to most commonly used antibiotics, there is a plea for judicious use of antibiotics, especially for clean surgical procedures. Potential adverse events associated with antibiotic use include allergic reaction (including anaphylaxis), clostridium difficile infection,...
Ureteral clipping in children – longer term outcomes of a novel treatment
In this article, Lopes et al. report longer term outcomes of laparoscopic clipping of ureters of non-functioning kidneys or non-functioning renal moieties in duplex kidneys associated with ectopic ureter or obstructive ureteroceles. In 2014, their group published a promising preliminary...
Dual therapy for OAB in children
Overactive bladder (OAB) is a disorder frequently encountered by the paediatric urologist. Morin et al. report the results of the first known study on the efficacy of mirabegron (a β3 adrenoceptor agonist) as add-on therapy in paediatric patients with refractory...
Fertility preservation for paediatric patients
Paediatric patients are at risk for future infertility due to medical conditions and treatments. As the most well-known example, many patients undergoing oncological therapy are at risk of future infertility. In addition, those receiving immunosuppressive or stem cell transplant therapy...
Bladder cancer outcomes in patients with spina bifida
These authors carried out a systematic review using PubMed and a number of terms to pick up studies with an underlying diagnosis of myelomeningocele and bladder cancer, with exclusions of cord injury, tuberculosis, schistosomiasis, or prior ureterosigmoidostomy. Their aim was...
