Boys with posterior urethral valves: outcome concerning renal function, bladder function and paternity at ages 31 to 44 years.

PURPOSE

The short-term prognosis for boys with posterior urethral valves (PUV) has improved in recent decades, but the long-term prognosis in terms of renal and bladder function and fertility is still a matter of great concern. This study is a followup of boys with PUV and dilated upper urinary tract treated in 1956 to 1970 at the Children's Hospital in Göteborg, Sweden.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The records of 54 boys treated for PUV were reviewed. Of 27 boys with PUV and upper urinary tract dilation, 5 boys (18%) died at an early age and 3 boys were lost to followup during adolescence, leaving 19 to be included in the followup. They all answered a questionnaire about renal and bladder function and paternity.

RESULTS

Of the 19 men 32% were uremic, 21% had moderate renal failure and 47% had not been checked since adolescence. There were signs of bladder dysfunction in 40% and all these subjects had bladder symptoms suggesting detrusor weakness as the cause. All the men were continent. The ability to father children was dependent on whether or not the man was uremic.

CONCLUSIONS

This long-term followup study emphasizes the importance of checking renal and bladder function throughout life in men born with PUV. Increasing attention to bladder dysfunction and its early treatment could probably improve the long-term prognosis.