OBJECTIVE: To determine the types and prevalence of musculoskeletal involvement in children with prune-belly syndrome, and to analyze the pathogenesis of the syndrome in relationship to the musculoskeletal deformities. DESIGN: A retrospective review of charts and roentgenograms along with a comprehensive review of 188 cases from the literature. SETTING: Tertiary care children's hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Twelve boys treated between 1975 and 1990. MEASUREMENTS/MAIN RESULTS: The prevalence of musculoskeletal involvement in patients was 45%. The involvement can be congenital (eg, clubfeet, limb deficiencies, teratologic hip dysplasia, and vertebral malformations) or developmental (eg, renal osteodystrophy, scoliosis, and pectus excavatum and/or pectus carinatum). The embryologic characteristics of congenital musculoskeletal problems correlate better with the embryologic theory of the prune-belly syndrome (an aberration of mesenchymal development around 6 weeks of gestation) than with the distal urinary tract obstructive theory. CONCLUSION: Since children with prune-belly syndrome are now living into adulthood, these musculoskeletal aspects will become important regarding potential morbidity.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the types and prevalence of musculoskeletal involvement in children with prune-belly syndrome, and to analyze the pathogenesis of the syndrome in relationship to the musculoskeletal deformities. DESIGN: A retrospective review of charts and roentgenograms along with a comprehensive review of 188 cases from the literature. SETTING: Tertiary care children's hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Twelve boys treated between 1975 and 1990. MEASUREMENTS/MAIN RESULTS: The prevalence of musculoskeletal involvement in patients was 45%. The involvement can be congenital (eg, clubfeet, limb deficiencies, teratologic hip dysplasia, and vertebral malformations) or developmental (eg, renal osteodystrophy, scoliosis, and pectus excavatum and/or pectus carinatum). The embryologic characteristics of congenital musculoskeletal problems correlate better with the embryologic theory of the prune-belly syndrome (an aberration of mesenchymal development around 6 weeks of gestation) than with the distal urinary tract obstructive theory. CONCLUSION: Since children with prune-belly syndrome are now living into adulthood, these musculoskeletal aspects will become important regarding potential morbidity.