title: The impact of obesity on febrile urinary tract infection and renal scarring in children with vesicoureteral reflux.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  It has become clear that obesity is associated with a variety of infectious diseases, including urinary tract infection (UTI) and renal scarring.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between obesity and the degree of febrile UTI (fUTI) and renal scarring in children with vesicoureteral reflux (VUR), and to stratify the results into obesity subcategories.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 186 patients were diagnosed with VUR between January 2002 and December 2008. This study retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 72 children with primary VUR who had recurrent fUTI (more than twice). Overweight or obese status of the patients aged <2 years was defined using weight-for-length (WFL) measurements. For 2-5 year old children, body mass index (BMI) percentile-for-age was used. They were divided into three groups as follows; standard (<85%), overweight (85-95%), and obese (≥95%). The following clinical variables were compared: age at diagnosis of primary VUR (months), sex, VUR grade, hydronephrosis grade, presence of renal scarring, surgical treatment, and degree of inflammation during fUTI.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the overweight and obese groups, VUR was diagnosed at a young age (P = 0.05), the degree of renal scarring was more severe (P = 0.006), and serum white blood cell count, C-reactive protein, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) levels were significantly higher (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, and P < 0.001, respectively). Abnormal focal dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) defects were present in 25 of the 72 children (35%). Cortical defects occurred more frequently in children with obesity, and they were associated with a higher grade of reflux and serum ESR levels (P = 0.007, P = 0.042, and P = 0.021, respectively). Among these risk factors, high-grade VUR (OR = 9.93, 95% CI = 1.13-86.71), and being overweight and obese (OR = 5.26, 95% CI = 1.75-15.82) were associated with increased renal scarring. However, ESR was not associated with renal scarring (OR = 1.01, 95% CI = 0.95-1.07).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The relationships between obesity and UTI are controversial. Some studies have shown positive results; however, other studies have shown opposite results. The main limitations of this study were the retrospective data collection via electronic medical records, and the small number of subjects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed that obesity in patients with VUR has an effect on fUTI and renal scar formation. If the patients with VUR have obesity, close follow-up should be performed, and VUR patients should be started on a weight-loss program, which could reduce the number of patients with chronic kidney disease in the future.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Keimyung University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: H J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Byun
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Keimyung University, Daegu, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: uroha@dsmc.or.kr.
authors.forename: J Y
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Ha
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Keimyung University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Keimyung University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: B H
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Keimyung University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Keimyung University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: C I
authors.initials: CI
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D001774:Blood Chemical Analysis; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002921:Cicatrix / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D015897:Comorbidity; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D006869:Hydronephrosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015994:Incidence; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014718:Vesico-Ureteral Reflux / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D002097:C-Reactive Protein
keywords: Hydronephrosis; Obesity; Vesico-ureteral reflux