Association of body weight and urinary tract infections during infancy: a nationwide comparative matched cohort study

Abstract

Purpose This article was to investigate the association between urinary tract infections (UTIs) and high weight status in infancy. Methods We conducted a nationwide matched cohort study from January 2018 to December 2020 using data from the Korean National Health Insurance System and the Korean National Health Screening Program for Infants and Children. We analyzed the association between UTI diagnosis codes and high weight status (which was defined as being in the 90th percentile or higher of weight-for-age). Results We found that 22.8% of infants with UTIs exhibited high weight status, compared to 20.0% of non-UTI infants (P<0.001). Per our multivariable analyses, the adjusted odds ratio for high weight status was 1.09 (95% confidence interval, 1.06–1.13). Conclusions UTI in the first 12 months of life was associated with a weight-for-age percentile of ≥90. Our findings corroborate those of previous single-center studies and emphasize the importance of careful monitoring for this at-risk group.

Keywords

• body weight
• infant
• urinary tract infections