What is hydronephrosis in infants?

Infant hydronephrosis is a common disease in the development stage of newborns. It has many causes. Generally, it is caused by the mother drinking too much water, which leads to kidney dysfunction. Another cause is poor development of the fetal ureter. Therefore, we recommend that you analyze the causes of infant hydronephrosis in life and then treat the disease.

We should start with fetal hydronephrosis. The human urinary system is actually like a complete drainage treatment pipeline system. The water consumed by the human body will eventually gather in the kidneys after physiological circulation, where it will be broken down by the kidneys to form urine and excreted from the body through the urinary system. Under normal circumstances, the urinary system's plumbing is unobstructed. However, if a urinary system disease occurs, it may cause obstruction of the urinary tract lumen, directly affecting the secretion and excretion of urine, causing water to be retained in the kidneys and unable to be excreted smoothly. This is what is medically known as hydronephrosis. By the same token, if the fetus has abnormal kidney function and structure during its development in the mother's womb, it may also lead to urinary function or urinary tract obstruction, affect the excretion of fetal urine, and cause fetal hydronephrosis.

The causes of fetal hydronephrosis are rather complicated and are generally divided into two situations. One is reversible, that is, the fetus temporarily experiences renal dysfunction or structural abnormalities during development. However, as the child grows, this functional defect is gradually made up, especially after birth, due to changes in the environment, renal function returns to normal and hydronephrosis disappears. This situation is common in fetal ureteral contraction rhythm disorders caused by some reasons, or temporary anatomical abnormalities during ureteral development. This reversible hydronephrosis will gradually disappear as the fetus develops, so there is no need to terminate the pregnancy.

The other type is irreversible, which is common in congenital ureteral stenosis and is often accompanied by urinary insufficiency. If a fetus with this type of hydronephrosis is born, necessary treatment should be given in a timely manner to improve its urinary system function. Although color ultrasound diagnosis can detect fetal hydronephrosis, it also has certain limitations. It cannot clarify the true cause of hydronephrosis, nor can it predict the development direction of hydronephrosis.

Regarding the causes of hydronephrosis in infants introduced by Wenming, I hope that you as parents can understand it well. If you find that the fetus has hydronephrosis during pregnancy, we recommend that you go to the hospital for a check-up. This will help you find the problem and better ensure the healthy development of our fetus.