ABSTRACT. Objective. To evaluate risk factors for progression of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infection to the hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).Study Design. We conducted a retrospective cohort study among 278 Washington State children <16 years old who developed symptomatic culture-confirmed E coli O157:H7 infection during a large 1993 outbreak. The purpose of the study was to determine the relative risk (RR) of developing HUS according to demographic characteristics, symptoms, laboratory test results, and medication use in the first 3 days of illness.Results. Thirty-seven (14%) children developed HUS. In univariate analysis, no associations were observed between HUS risk and any demographic characteristic, the presence of bloody diarrhea or of fever, or medication use. In multivariate analysis, HUS risk was associated with, in the first 3 days of illness, use of antimotility agents (odds ratio [OR] ؍ 2.9; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2-7.5) and, among children <5.5 years old, vomiting (OR ؍ 4.2; 95% CI 1.4 -12.7). Among the 128 children tested, those whose white blood cell (WBC) count was 13 000/L in the first 3 days of illness had a 7-fold increased risk of developing HUS (RR 7.2; 95% CI 2.8 -18.5). Thirteen (38%) of the 34 patients with a WBC count 13 000/L developed HUS, but only 5 (5%) of the 94 children whose initial WBC count was <13 000/L progressed to HUS. Among children who did not develop HUS, use of antimotility agents in the first 3 days of illness was associated with longer duration of bloody diarrhea.Conclusions. Prospective studies are needed to further evaluate measures to prevent the progression of E coli O157:H7 infection to HUS and to assess further clinical and laboratory risk factors. These data argue against the use of antimotility agents in acute childhood diarrhea. Our finding that no intervention decreased HUS risk underscores the importance of preventing E coli O157:H7 infections. Pediatrics 1997;100(1). URL: http:// www.pediatrics.org/cgi/content/full/100/1/e12; antibiotics, antimotility agents, Escherichia coli O157:H7, kidney failure, leukocytosis.ABBREVIATIONS. HUS, hemolytic uremic syndrome; BUN, blood urea nitrogen; RR, relative risk; CI, confidence interval; TMP/SMZ, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole; OR, odds ratio; WBC, white blood cell; Stx, Shiga toxin. E scherichia coli O157:H7 causes bloody and nonbloody diarrhea that progresses to hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) in a subset of patients.1,2 Though the gastrointestinal manifestations of infection with E coli O157:H7 can be severe, HUS accounts for the major acute and chronic morbidity and mortality caused by this organism.Associations between certain host-specific factors and the risk of progression of enteric infection with E coli O157:H7 to HUS have been reported. In population-based studies of HUS, age-specific incidence was highest among children Ͻ5 years of age, but these studies did not evaluate risk factors for progression of diarrhea or hemorrhagic colitis to HUS. [3][4][5][6] In some studies of children with E coli O...