Prolapse of the Female Urethra in Children

Urethral prolapse misdiagnosed as vaginal bleeding in a premenarchal girl

“…This uncommon condition in prepubescent girls has a high rate of misdiagnosis, and in the USA is seen more commonly in African Americans [1,3,5]. The pathophysiology has not been clearly identified but is thought to result from poor attachments between the smooth muscle layers of the urethra in association with recurrent episodes of increased intraabdominal pressure [2].…”

Urethral prolapse in girls.

“…The youngest child reported was only 5 days old (Barnes, 1953). Recently American authors, Peters (1962) and Owens and Morse (1968), have noted a predilection for Negro girls, and this may have some bearing on the apparent infrequency of examples in this country in the past, and it is noteworthy that our three girls were West Indians. This racial preference does not seem to affect elderly patients.…”

“…He analysed 211 patients with the condition, almost exactly half of whom were children. Since that time there have been a number of single case reports but only one large series, that of Owens and Morse (1968) which dealt with 54 children. The early authors recognized that the condition occurred either in childhood or old age, and rarely between puberty and 60 years.…”

Genital bleeding

“…Owens et al published a case series in 1968 wherein most children required surgical correction 2. Few cases have been published on this topic in the UK.…”