Urinary Screening for Detection of Asymptomatic Haematuria and Proteinuria in Children in Urban and Periurban Schools in Port Harcourt

Summary In order to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic haematuria and proteinuria, a survey was carried out among pupils of two primary schools, one located in the urban area and the other in the periurban area of Port Harcourt Local Government Area. The prevalence rate of significant asymptomatic proteinuria was one percent and that for haematuria was 0.6 percent. There was no significant difference in the prevalence rate of asymptomatic proteinuria or haematuria between children in the periurban school when compared to those in the urban school. Although the yield from mass urinary screening was low, majority of those detected to have significant urinary abnormalities had persistence of those abrormalities when followed up. Urinalysis should therefore be done routinely as part of the school health programme in primary schools and children found to have urinary abnormalities should undergo further evaluation and follow up over a long period