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Ultrasound mass screening for congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract

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Abstract

Background

There is a high incidence of congenital anomalies of the kidneys and urinary tract (CAKUT). Early diagnosis of these defects may allow the best medical and/or surgical treatment to be implemented as rapidly as possible, preventing or at least slowing down an evolution toward chronic kidney disease.

Methods

Ultrasound mass screening for kidney and urinary tract abnormalities in infants at 2 months of age was carried out in Salento, Italy. The centers involved in the study examined a total of 17,783 infants between January 1992 and December 2010.

Results

A total of 171 CAKUT were identified in the course of the mass screening. The frequency of CAKUT was 0.96%. Vesicoureteral reflux (n = 39) was the most frequent renal abnormality found, followed by ureteropelvic junction obstruction (n = 33), ectopic kidney (n = 26), and renal dysplasia (n = 19). In addition, nephrogenic rests (n = 2), as well as several extra-renal pathologies, including abdominal neuroblastoma (n = 3), were diagnosed incidentally.

Conclusion

Ultrasound has been effective for early detection of renal and urinary tract anomalies. In addition, this screening has proved to be very useful for the early identification and management of both renal and extra-renal precancerous as well as cancerous lesions. However, most patients requiring surgery in this study (0.24%) would probably have been symptomatic and come to medical attention without routine screening. On the basis of our results screening is not justified.

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Conflict of interest

None of the authors has any conflict of interest to declare.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Neonatal Nephrology Study Group, Italian Society of Neonatology, Piazza Angeli 3, 72100, Brindisi, Italy

    Vito Antonio Caiulo & Luigi Cataldi

  2. Division of Neonatology, Perrino Hospital, Brindisi, Italy

    Vito Antonio Caiulo & Giuseppe Latini

  3. School of Medicine, San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy

    Silvana Caiulo

  4. School of Medicine, San Paolo Humanitas, University of Milan, Milan, Italy

    Clara Gargasole

  5. School of Medicine, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy

    Giovanni Chiriacò

  6. Clinical Physiology Institute (IFC-CNR), National Research Council of Italy, Lecce, Italy

    Giuseppe Latini

  7. Department of Pediatric, School of Medicine, Catholic University of Roma, Roma, Italy

    Luigi Cataldi

  8. Italian Federation of Pediatricians, Lecce, Italy

    Giuseppe Mele

Authors
  1. Vito Antonio Caiulo
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  2. Silvana Caiulo
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  3. Clara Gargasole
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  4. Giovanni Chiriacò
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  5. Giuseppe Latini
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  6. Luigi Cataldi
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  7. Giuseppe Mele
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Correspondence to Vito Antonio Caiulo.

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Caiulo, V.A., Caiulo, S., Gargasole, C. et al. Ultrasound mass screening for congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract. Pediatr Nephrol 27, 949–953 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00467-011-2098-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00467-011-2098-0

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