Common urologic problems in children: guides to evaluation and referral, Part I.

A discussion of common urologic problems in children is presented to provide primary physicians with appropriate guidelines for evaluation and referrals. The problems will be discussed in two parts: Part I will cover urinary tract infections, voiding dysfunctions, hematuria and proteinuria. Part II will cover abnormalities found on antenatal renal ultrasonography, hypospadias and other penile anomalies, phimosis, undescended testes, inguinal hernia and hydrocele, and varicoceles. An adage states: "The questions in medicine never change over time--only the answers." Certainly the busy primary care physician may experience the frustration of changing evaluation guidelines established by narrow subspecialties. Guidelines for the evaluation of children with disorders of the genitourinary tract are no exception. The following presentation will address some of the most common childhood urologic problems with a brief discussion of how to evaluate and when to refer for pediatric urologic consultation or management.