Silent anomalies of the urinary tract in children with congenital heart disease

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of urinary tract anomalies (UTA) in children with congenital heart disease (CHD). We studied 295 patients undergoing angiocardiograms for diagnosis of CHD. A cineurogram was obtained in all patients in order to detect unsuspected UTA. We found UTA in 55 of 295 patients (18.6%). Pyelo-chaliceal dilation was found in 25.5%, malrotation in 20%, hydronephrosis in 14.5%, ectopic kidney in 14.5%, hydro-ureteronephrosis in 12.7%, double collecting system in 9.1%, and ectopic ureter in 3.6%. In our study, the highest incidence of UTA was found in CHDs with left-side stenosis like aortic stenosis or coarctation of aorta (30.6%) and the lowest incidence was in those with left-to-right shunt (13.6%). The postangiocardiographic cineurogram appears to be an inexpensive, easy, and useful method of screening for UTA in children with CHD.