ABSTRACT
In prior editions, this chapter was introduced with the concept that recently discovered bacterial virulence factors, such as those promoting adherence to uroepithelial cells, were assuming a greater importance in the pathophysiology of urinary tract infections (UTIs) in children. However important these genetically encoded bacterial factors might be in enhancing the potential of uropathogenic bacteria to cause symptomatic disease, mounting evidence suggests that deficient host defense factors and tissue repair mechanisms may contribute more significantly to an individual’s susceptibility to urinary infection.
