Epispadias

Abstract

Epispadias is an exceedingly rare condition affecting 1 in 117,000 live male births and 1 in 484,000 live female births. Therefore, outside of a handful of exstrophy centers worldwide, few health care providers can be expected to be familiar with its diagnosis and management. The purpose of this chapter is to explain what epispadias is, how it is diagnosed and managed, and what the expected outcomes may be. While the care for this type of defect is best managed at a children’s center with experienced reconstructive urologic surgeons, the initial counseling will usually fall on the shoulders of the child’s pediatrician. We hope to provide useful information that will allow primary care physicians to inform parents about this birth defect and answer the questions that they will most likely encounter.