Clinical Characteristics of Acute Epididymitis in Prepubertal Patients

Jung, Seung IL; Joo, Jae Sang; Kang, Taek Won; Kwon, Dong Deuk; Park, Kwangsung; Ryu, Soo Bang

Abstract

To describe clinical aspects and to assess the value of invasive radiological investigations in prepubertal patients with acute epididymitis (AE). The medical records of 75 prepubertal patients with acute epididymitis over 10 years were retrospectively reviewed. The final diagnosis were made from the symptoms, physical examinations, the laboratory tests, color Doppler ultrasonography, and the surgical findings in cases that underwent surgery. Age, the presence of urinary tract infection, underlying diseases, laterality in acute epididymitis were analyzed. Seventy-five patients with an overall mean age of 8.9 years (range 1 month-16.0 years) presented with AE. In 7 patients (9.3%), urine analysis revealed pyuria. Evidences of urinary tract infection were not common in children with epididymitis. And 6.7% (5/75) of patients revealed concomitant urological disease or non-urological disease, 3.1% (1/32) of prepubertal patients who underwent radiological examination had an underlying urogenital malformation but treatment was not influenced by the uropathy. Investigation with invasive imaging study such as voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG) for underlying urological abnormality in children with AE is not routinely recommended and should be reserved only for in selected cases.