Journal Reviews
Solifenacin for children and adolescents with overactive bladders
Solifenacin (VESIcare®) is the second-line anti-muscarinic medication of choice for my patients with overactive bladder (oxybutynin being my initial choice). However, currently, it remains unlicensed for use in children. Newgreen et al. have evaluated the long-term safety and efficacy of...
Bladder perforation after augmentation cystoplasty
Delayed bladder perforation is well recognised after augmentation cystoplasty (5-13% of patients) and adult urologists need to be aware of this and identify the best treatment at the time. Mortality rates and re-perforation rates can be up to 25% and...
Clean catch urine from babies – the ‘quick wee method’
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common in children and babies and can lead to urosepsis, renal scarring and chronic kidney disease. As per American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines, urine samples are a must in febrile / unwell infants even if...
Reliability of grading of VUR and other findings on VCUG
The gold standard for diagnosing VUR is still the voiding cycstogram (VCUG). These authors looked at the inter observer variability of grading of vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) using a VCUG and highlight the implications for treatment and prognosis as a results....
Transfer to tertiary paediatric hospitals for patients with testicular torsion
Although this articles comes from a tertiary centre in Columbus, USA, there are similarities with the current controversies in the UK. The authors carried out a five-year retrospective review looking at the surgical transfer of 125 patients (mean age 13.4,...
Which is better – laparoscopic or open paediatric pyeloplasty?
In an attempt to answer the above question, Gatti et al. undertook a randomised controlled trial between 2005 and 2014. All children aged 1 to 18 years of age requiring surgery for pelviureteric junction (PUJ) obstruction were enrolled. A total...
Does maternal exposure during pregnancy to higher ambient temperature increase the risk of hypospadias?
The search for the causes of hypospadias continues at a pace. These authors from Turkey extrapolated other findings about the higher incidence of congenital anomalies in babies during summer months’ gestation to studying the risks of high ambient temperature during...
Ten years of experience with intravesical and intrasphincteric botulinum toxin A in children
This is one of the longest follow-up studies of botulinum toxin A usage in children with bladder dysfunction in the paediatric literature. Fifty-three children had Botox® (Allergan) injected for a variety of reasons (spina bifida – 18, acquired cord injury...
How successful is the transition to adult urology care in spina bifida?
These authors from Indianapolis, USA, aimed to assess rates and predictors of successful transition into adult care of spina bifida patients. They did this by a retrospective review of 77 patients discharged from a multidisciplinary paediatric clinic at a mean...
Bedside teaching
All of us are involved in the teaching and training of under or postgraduate medical students and nurses. This article gives a patient’s perspective and thoughts on being an ‘interesting’ patient within a ward or clinic setting. Important points to...
BAPU consensus statement on the management of the neuropathic bladder
The summary of this paper states that a “consensus statement is not a guideline nor a method with which to establish what is best practice. It is a way of surveying practice and providing a benchmark for others to compare...
Who should be taking care of the adolescent with testicular torsion?
From time to time (as paediatric surgeons), we receive referrals from regional hospitals to explore the testis in older boys. Given the time-critical nature of the condition, patients should benefit from assessment and surgery performed locally (when possible). Inter-hospital transfer...
