Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this manuscript is to describe the clinical and imaging findings in children who have single-system ureteroceles.
Materials and methods. We reviewed the urology records and imaging studies in 32 consecutive infants and children who were diagnosed in our department with single-system ureteroceles.
Results. There were 35 ureteroceles in the 32 patients – 29 were unilateral (14 right-sided, 15 left-sided) and 3 were bilateral. Twenty-five patients were boys (78 %) and 7 girls. Mean age at presentation was 0.7 years (0–9.2 years). Prenatally detected hydronephrosis or cystic renal dysplasia was the most common presentation (24 patients). Four presented with urinary infection, 2 with abdominal mass, 1 had myelomeningocele, and 1 had hypospadias. Three patients also had multiple non-urologic, congenital anomalies. Thirty-three ureteroceles were intravesical, and 2 were ectopic to the bladder neck. Twenty-four ureteroceles were associated with ipsilateral hydroureteronephrosis and 10 with ipsilateral multicystic dysplastic kidney. One patient had a normal ipsilateral kidney and a contralateral multicystic dysplastic kidney. The ureterocele was identified on at least one imaging study in each patient. Sixteen ureteroceles (47 %) everted at VCUG, mimicking paraureteral diverticula. Other variations included ureterocele prolapse and inadvertent ureterocele catheterization (1 each).
Conclusions. Single-system ureterocele is an important, although uncommon cause of hydronephrosis and renal dysplasia in infants and children. Single-system ureterocele is distinguished clinically from the more common duplex-system ureterocele by its frequent occurrence in boys and its association with multicystic dysplastic kidney. Because these ureteroceles are frequently small and have a propensity to evert at VCUG, they can be mistaken for paraureteral diverticula.
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Received: 6 July 1999/Accepted: 2 September 1999
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Zerin, J., Baker, D. & Casale, J. Single-system ureteroceles in infants and children: imaging features. Pediatric Radiology 30, 139–146 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/s002470050032
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s002470050032