Magnus Lindén: Improving management of urinary tract infections in infants
Urinary tract infections in infants can lead to kidney damage and often require extensive examinations. Magnus Lindén’s research contributes to more efficient management and reduces the number of children exposed to radiation.
MAGNUS LINDÉN
Dissertation defense: 14 March 2025 (click for details)
Doctoral thesis: Urinary tract infection in infants - studies on management and genetic susceptibility
Research area: Pediatrics
Sahlgrenska Academy, The Institute of Clinical Sciences
About two percent of all children under the age of one develop urinary tract infections. Fever is often the only symptom, making the diagnosis difficult to establish and confirm.
The infection can cause lasting kidney damage and sometimes, congenital anatomical abnormalities in the kidneys contribute to the infection. This is why an evaluation, often including radiological examinations, is conducted after a first urinary tract infection in infants. However, opinions differ on both how the diagnosis should be made and how extensive the examinations should be.
Magnus Lindén has analyzed how Swedish pediatric clinics handle these infections. In collaboration with a research group in Lund, he has also investigated genetic factors linked to the risk of developing kidney damage.
Guidelines should be revised
“We found that kidney damage and anatomical abnormalities are detected as expected, but at the cost of numerous radiological examinations. It is time to revise the guidelines to reduce the burden of testing and limit radiation exposure. My studies will serve as an important foundation for this work,” says Magnus Lindén, who is a pediatrician at the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescents in Halmstad and a doctoral student at the Institute of Clinical Sciences.
Improved routines can help healthcare providers better determine which infants actually require extensive examinations and which can be monitored in other ways. Finding this balance is one of the major challenges.
What did the study on the connection between genetic factors and kidney injury reveal?
“It showed that a genetic profile consisting of variations in a large group of genes could predict which children developed kidney injury. So far, the analysis is too complex for clinical use. However, our results may contribute to the ongoing and important search for better risk markers for kidney injury.”
Challenges of studying infants
What have been the most rewarding aspects of your doctoral project?
“Collaborating with colleagues across the country has been incredibly rewarding and has helped me build a strong professional network. Throughout the project, I have also gained extensive knowledge about infections and kidney diseases, which will be highly useful in my clinical work,” says Magnus Lindén.
And the most challenging?
“Studying acutely ill infants while addressing parents’ concerns has been a challenge. I have gained a deep respect for the complexities involved in conducting research on young children.”
Text: Jakob Lundberg