Female Pediatric UTI Visits Up in Emergency Departments

SAN DIEGO—Emergency department (ED) visits for urinary tract infections (UTIs) in female pediatric patients have been increasing, data presented at the American Urological Association annual meeting show.

From 2006-2009, ED visits for pediatric UTIs increased significantly by an estimated 3.46% annually among female patients and nonsignificantly by 3.41% among male patients, according to an analysis by Frank J. Penna, MD, Henry Ford Hospital’s Vattikuti Urology Institute in Detroit, and colleagues.

The study also demonstrated that the estimated total costs associated with ED visits for pediatric UTIs increased by a nearly 14% annually.

“These increases emphasize the importance of proper screening and management for pediatric UTIs on the part of the pediatrician in the outpatient setting,” the authors concluded.

Dr. Penna and his team analyzed data from the 2006-2009 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample, the largest all-payer ED database in the U.S.