Hydronephrosis

Hydronephrosis

Signs and Symptoms
Diagnosis
Treatment

Treatment

If your child is not on antibiotics, he or she will receive a prescription for a low-dose, daily antibiotic. The types of antibiotics are very specific for the urinary tract and have very few, if any, side effects. The type of antibiotics your child will receive depends on your child's age, weight and allergies. The goal of antibiotics is to prevent kidney infections that may occur as a result of the hydronephrosis. Once the special X-ray tests have been completed, we can estimate the total time of antibiotic treatment.

Typically, non-obstructive hydronephrosis and grade one to three hydronephrosis don't need surgery and resolve over time. The need for surgery depends on the severity of the hydronephrosis and is different for each child. Children diagnosed with dilation from ureterovesical junction abnormalities called megaureters rarely if ever need surgical repair. Children with grade four hydronephrosis, the most severe, are the most likely to require surgery to prevent renal damage and recurrent infection. The surgery to correct hydronephrosis is called pyeloplasty.

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Children's Hospital.
Last updated May 8, 2007