title: Characteristics of bacteriuria in a homogeneous maternity hospital population.
abstract: Bacteriuria and urinary tract infection are a common cause of morbidity in pregnancy. Recent evidence has, however, questioned the magnitude of this risk and the effectiveness of therapy in reducing it. To clarify matters, a prospective study on 3123 ante-natal women was carried out. Screening for bacteriuria was carried out by culturing a mid-stream specimen of urine. Treatment was given to all patients with a positive culture and was based on antibiotic sensitivity testing. Repeat culture was performed 1 week after completion of therapy. The prevalence of bacteriuria in our population was 4.74%. Over half of these patients were asymptomatic. 67% of those with bacteriuria at screening were symptomatic or had a past history of urinary tract infection. Escherichia coli was the predominant organism cultured. The most effective antibiotic was Nitrofurantoin, which was sensitive in over 90% of isolates. Late urinary tract infection occurred in 3.52% of patients. There was no increase in maternal or foetal complications amongst those with bacteriuria. We concluded that it might be more cost-effective to confine screening to those patients who are symptomatic or have a past history of urinary tract infection.
authors.affiliation: RCSI Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Rotunda Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dempsey
authors.forename: R F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moloney
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Darling
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Walshe
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001437:Bacteriuria / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000191:economics; D009582:Nitrofurantoin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D009582:Nitrofurantoin