Proteinuria in Sudanese children.

Abstract

One thousand, eight hundred and forty-six apparently healthy nursery and school children living in the Khartoum area and belonging to different socio-economic classes were studied. Nine hundred and thirty-seven were boys, 909 girls. Their ages ranged from three to 16 years. N-multistix strips were used to test for proteinuria and haematuria, the former being also checked by the sulphosalicylic acid test. Children with proteinuria of 1+ or more were further investigated by examining their urinary sediment for abnormal deposits and by testing for orthostatic proteinuria using day and night specimens of urine with specific gravity of 1.018 or more. Children who had no proteins on orthostatic testing were rescreened for proteinuria 10-14 days after the initial screening. The prevalence rate for proteinuria was 7.2% with no significant difference between boys and girls. In both sexes the prevalence rate increased significantly with age but was not influenced by the socio-economic status. Of the children with proteinuria, haematuria occurred in 27% and abnormal urinary deposits in 14.8%. Orthostatic testing showed a negative result for proteins in 44%, orthostatic proteinuria in 40%, of whom a third had either abnormal urinary sediments or haematuria, and continuous proteinuria in 15.6% of whom the majority had abnormal deposits.