Urinary Screening for Detection of Renal Abnormalities in Asymptomatic School Children

Abstract

BackgroundUrinary screening tests for early detection of renal diseases in asymptomatic school children and adolescents are important in the detection of silent renal diseases.ObjectivesThe purpose of the study was to determine the prevalence of occult renal diseases by dipstick test (reagent strips) in asymptomatic Nepalese children.Patients and MethodsA total of 2,243 school children, aged 5–15 years, were screened for urinary abnormalities using dipstick test screening. The children who tested positive in the first screening were re-tested after 2–4 weeks.ResultsIn the first screening, 123 children (5.5%) tested positive for isolated hematuria and proteinuria and for combined hematuria and proteinuria. Of these children, 16 (0.71%) cases tested positive in a second screening. Subsequently, 1 child from the secondary screening group was lost to follow up, 5 tested normal and 10 revealed abnormalities. Glomerulonephritis was the most commonly detected disorder (50%).ConclusionsUrinary screening was found to be useful in identifying occult renal diseases in asymptomatic children. Urinary screening would therefore not only help in early detection but also in the prevention of the deterioration of renal function later in life.

Urinary Screening in Primary School Children in Yazd, Iran

“…In addition, the prevalence of proteinuria and/or hematuria may be related to different age groups. The findings of the current study were consistent with those of Parakh et al who found that urinary abnormalities were more common in girls than boys (12). Other authors (21-23) also showed that urinary abnormalities were more frequent in girls compared with boys.…”

“…The prevalence of urine abnormality persisted in 0.79% on further testing in the second screening. It is compatible with the results of other studies that showed a prevalence of 0.72% and 0.71%, respectively (11,12). Proteinuria is relatively common in children, with a reported prevalence of 1%-10%, while persistent proteinuria is much less common (13).…”

“…Two children had features of glomerulonephritis in the present study. Parakh et al (12) from Nepal and Bakr et al (11) from Egypt reported glomerulonephritis in respectively 50% and 66.6% of their subjects with confirmed urinary abnormalities. There are some controversies over the value of urine screening in school children.…”

Spectrum of Kidney and Urinary Tract Diseases in Kashmiri Children.

“…Data describing the spectrum of renal diseases in hospitalized children in our neighbouring country Nepal is scanty 6 . Previously, the prevalence of renal diseases in asymptomatic school children was found to be 0.71% in our country 7 .…”

Persistent proteinuria as an indicator of renal disease in HIV-infected children

“…Variations in prevalences of proteinuria were associated with varying racial backgrounds. 39 HIVAN was not only found to be more common in the African races, but families of HIVAN patients had higher incidence of kidney disease. 40 However, some studies did not include a family history of kidney disease as one of the variables.…”