Obesity as a Risk Factor for Urinary Tract Infection in Children.

Childhood obesity is a nationwide epidemic with an estimated 16% to 18% of children and adolescents qualifying as obese and another 21% to 24% considered overweight. Obesity has been linked to an increased risk of developing serious infections. Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project-Kids' Inpatient Database 2009 was queried to analyze national trends in patient encounters, specifically those listing patients as comorbid obese and then identified those with urinary tract infection (UTI) as primary or secondary diagnosis.