Pitt Pediatrics congratulates Catherine S. Forster, MD, MS, FAAP, on her recent publication in The Journal of Pediatrics. Her article, “Accuracy of NGAL as a biomarker for UTI in young febrile children: An individual patient-data meta-analysis” focuses on comparing the accuracy of a novel biomarker to the standard method of the diagnosis of urinary tract infection (UTI) in pediatric populations. 
Leukocyte esterase (LE), a component of the urine dipstick, is frequently used to diagnose UTI. However, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), a novel biomarker, has been shown in some studies to be superior to LE for the diagnosis of UTI. UTIs are common, but can be overdiagnosed, leading to unnecessary antibiotics. A better diagnostic marker may decrease the use of unnecessary antibiotics for UTI. Forster’s study, which consisted of a systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies on the use NGAL to diagnose UTIs, used a standardized definition of UTI to compare the diagnostic accuracy of NGAL with LE in children.
Ultimately, when looking at the results for over 840 children under three years of age, Forster and her team found that NGAL was more sensitive, though slightly less specific, than LE.
This research will further assist in the common diagnosis and treatment of UTIs in children and enable more accurate treatment among patients.
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