Purpose: We explored and quantified the relationships between dysfunctional elimination syndrome (DES), and gender, urinary tract infection (UTI) and vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) in children.
Materials and methods: Data on 2,759 pediatric patients treated at a referral practice who underwent renal sonography and voiding cystourethrography were summarized. The patients were children with VUR or normal genitourinary anatomy who presented with UTI or dysfunctional voiding and children screened for genitourinary problems such as hematuria, sibling reflux or bedwetting. A multivariate logistic regression approach was used to model and quantify the associations between DES and other pediatric urology factors.
Results: Of the girls 36.0% with unilateral VUR had DES, while 36.1% with bilateral VUR had DES. The corresponding rates for boys were 20.5% and 21.2%. The higher rate of DES in girls was independent of UTI and VUR status. While UTI was not associated with DES in boys or girls without VUR, in patients with VUR and UTI the risk of DES almost doubled (OR 1.97). Reflux alone without UTI was negatively associated with DES in boys (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.34, 0.73) and girls (OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.19, 0.36).
Conclusions: Girls had a significantly higher rate of DES than boys in all UTI and VUR subgroups in the current data. UTI significantly impacts the DES occurrence in patients with VUR. No statistically significant difference was detected in the DES rate between the unilateral and bilateral VUR groups, and the reflux group as a whole did not seem to have a higher rate of DES in boys or girls.