Significance of immediate preoperative bacteriuria with pyuria in renal transplant recipients

The presence of bacteriuria and pyuria on urinalysis immediately before renal transplantation has resulted in cancellation of surgery because of concern about post-transplant wound infection. Of 113 renal transplant recipients reviewed 41 (36 per cent) had 5 or more white blood cells per high power field with bacteria in either a voided urine or bladder washout specimen obtained just before grafting. Of those 41 patients 2 suffered postoperative wound infections. Of 72 patients (64 per cent) with less than 5 white blood cells or no bacteria on a preoperative specimen 1 suffered a wound infection (p not significant by Fisher's exact test). Preoperative urine cultures and operative bladder cultures of all 3 patients failed to yield the organisms found later in the wound infections. The factors of sex, insulin-dependent diabetes, delayed graft function, living related versus cadaver donor and pre-transplant splenectomy had no significant relationship to wound infection rates. Renal transplantation can be performed safely in patients who have pyuria and bacteriuria but no signs or symptoms of infection.     

Symptomatic recurrent urinary tract infections in patients with renal scarring in relation to fecal colonization with P-fimbriated Escherichia coli

We evaluated prospectively 49 women with renal scarring and a history of febrile urinary tract infections in regard to the incidence of recurrent symptomatic urinary tract infection and fecal colonization with P-fimbriated Escherichia coli. During a 3-year followup 26 patients (53 per cent) had symptomatic urinary tract infection (0.036 infections per patient-month), including 8 (16 per cent) who had 9 new episodes of febrile urinary tract infection, while 33 (67 per cent) had Escherichia coli bacteriuria (10(5) bacteria per ml. urine in pure culture). Thus, patients with previous febrile urinary tract infections and renal scarring have a high risk for recurrent infections. For comparison, the incidence of symptomatic urinary tract infection also was determined in 35 women with a recent episode of acute nonobstructive pyelonephritis and with normal kidneys on excretory urography. These patients had 0.031 symptomatic infections per patient-month. The fecal flora were examined twice a year for P-fimbriated Escherichia coli in 48 patients with renal scarring. Of these patients 21 (44 per cent) had at least 1 fecal colonization with a P-fimbriated Escherichia coli strain. However, in only 1 instance was a relationship detected between the presence of P-fimbriated Escherichia coli in the fecal flora and the development of subsequent febrile urinary tract infection. The findings indicate that fecal sampling twice a year is not of value to predict future urinary tract infections in adults with renal scarring.     

Anaerobic bacteriuria in renal transplantation.

Renal allograft recipients were studied prospectively utilizing improved culture techniques to investigate anaerobic bacteriuria. The study population was compared with a population of patients with chronic renal insufficiency and end stage renal disease. The over-all incidence of anaerobic urinary tract infection was 7.5 per cent while the over-all incidence of aerobic urinary tract infection was 23.5 per cent. Patients with cadaver renal transplants during the early postoperative period had the highest incidnece of both anaerobic (42.9 per cent) and aerobic (71.4 per cent) urinary tract infection of all groups. The potential association between significant anaerobic bacteriuria during the first postoperative month and poor prognosis for cadaver renal allografts merits further investigation.     

Anaerobic bacterium in renal transplantation

Renal allograft recipients were studied prospectively utilizing improved culture techniques to investigate anaerobic bacteriuria. The study population was compared with a population of patients with chronic renal insufficiency and end stage renal disease. The over-all incidence of anaerobic urinary tract infection was 7.5 per cent while the over-all incidence of aerobic urinary tract infection was 23.5 per cent. Patients with cadaver renal transplants during the early postoperative period had the highest incidence of both anaerobic (42.9 per cent) and aerobic (71.4 per cent) urinary tract infection of all groups. The potential association between significant anaerobic bacteriuria during the first postoperative month and poor prognosis for cadaver renal allografts merits further investigation.     

Faecal and introital bacteria and urinary tract infection.

The faecal, introital, and urinary bacterial flora have been studied in 3 normal women and 5 women with recurrent urinary infection. In the normal women urinary abnormalities were uncommon, but the patients regularly had episodes of bacteriuria and pyuria, only a quarter of which were symptomatic. Symptoms tended to be associated with high white cell excretion rates and with the longer episodes. Introital colonisation was heavier and more frequent in the patients than in the control subjects. Organisms recovered from the urine had previously colonised the introitus in most cases. It appears that symptomatic episodes constitute only a small part of the disease process in patients with recurrent urinary tract infection.     

Perioperative lower urinary tract infections and deep sepsis in patients undergoing total joint arthroplasty

Deep sepsis in the involved joint after hip or knee arthroplasty may be the result of hematogenous seeding from a remote infectious source. This mechanism has been used to explain the well-documented association between postoperative urinary tract infections and subsequent joint infection after hip or knee arthroplasty. However, it is unclear whether there is an association between preoperative bacteriuria and deep prosthetic infection. The purpose of this review is to identify perioperative risk factors associated with bacteriuria that have a positive correlation with deep joint sepsis following total hip or knee arthroplasty. The classic symptoms of dysuria, urgency, and frequency seen with urinary tract infections are often absent in the elderly despite the presence of urine coliforms; in these patients, pyuria (as indicated by the presence of more than 1x10(3) white blood cells per milliliter of noncentrifuged urine) may be used as a preliminary screening criterion. If there are irritative symptoms, the presence of more than 1x10(3) bacteria per milliliter of urine should be regarded as indicative of a urinary tract infection. If there is bacteriuria without symptoms of urinary irritation or obstruction, the current literature supports proceeding with total joint arthroplasty and treating those patients with urine colony counts greater than 1x10(3)/mL with an 8- to 10-day postoperative course of an appropriate oral antibiotic. Postponement of total joint surgery should be considered if preoperative evaluation reveals symptoms related to obstruction of the urinary pathway. Irritative symptoms in combination with a bacterial count greater than 1x10(3)/mL should also serve as an indication to postpone surgery. To diminish postoperative urinary tract infection, a bladder catheter should be inserted immediately preoperatively and removed within 24 hours of surgery to diminish the risk of urinary retention, which has been shown to increase the likelihood of a postoperative urinary tract infection.     

Correlation of antibody-coated bacteria with intravenous pyelogram in children with refluxing and nonrefluxing units

A fluorescent technique for detecting immune globulins on the surface of urinary bacteria has been used to differentiate upper from lower urinary tract infections. In an attempt to correlate positive fluorescence with deteriorative changes on the intravenous pyelogram, a total of 79 pediatric patients was studied. Twenty-three had ileal conduits with freely refluxing urine. The remaining 56 children had intact urinary tracts. Thirty of these had vesicoureteral reflux. Urine cultures were studied in conjunction with fluorescent antibody determinations. In patients with significant bacteriuria good correlation was seen with the presence of bacterial fluorescence and positive renal changes. This correlation was 88 per cent in patients with bowel conduits, 71 per cent in patients with vesicoureteral reflux, and 38 per cent in patients without reflux. Possible false positive and false negative results were relatively low, each occurred in 10 per cent of the specimens examined. It is concluded that the combination of urinary tract infection and positive bacterial fluorescence is seen when upper tract deterioration has occurred and is seen most frequently in association with urinary reflux. In these instances aggressive therapy is often indicated.     

Clinical studies of bacteriuria in renal transplantation recipients. Correlation with pyuria and symptomatic genitourinary tract infection

The clinical state of bacteriuria and its correlation with pyuria and symptomatic genitourinary tract infection (GUTI) were studied in 42 renal transplantation recipients who were followed up in the Kidney Center of Tokyo Women's Medical College over 6 months and who showed bacteriuria more than 3 times between January and December in 1987. The results were as follows. 1) Of the 42 recipients, bacteriuria was found less than 5 times in 19 patients, 6 to 10 times in 18 patients and more than 11 times in 5 patients. There was a tendency for the same bacteria to be isolated several times from the same patient. The most commonly isolated bacterias were Enterobacter, Enterococcus, Serratia and E. coli. 2) Bacteriuria was accompanied by pyuria in 33 patients (79%) and by symptomatic GUTI in 12 patients (29%). Bacteriuria without pyuria was shown in 9 patients (21%) without symptomatic GUTI and it was suggested that bacteriuria did not result in graft hypofunction after two years. 3) Of 16 patients with bacteriuria accompanied by pyuria, symptomatic GUTI occurred in 9 patients (56%). Of these, one patient was found to have VUR of the transplanted kidney, another was found to have VUR of the native kidney, and a third patient died due to interstitial pneumonitis presumably as a result of overimmunosuppression. Transplantation recipients with bacteriuria accompanied by pyuria develop symptomatic GUTIs frequently and should be treated with proper antibacterial agents. When bacteriuria continues, further examination should be performed for an organic disease of the urinary tract or an overimmunosuppressed state. When a patient shows bacteriuria without pyuria, chemotherapy is not needed and it is sufficient to observe the course carefully.     

Bacteriuria during closed urinary drainage: an evaluation of top-vented versus bag-vented systems.

For a 10-month period a top-vented closed urinary drainage system was evaluted and compared to a conventional bag-vented drainage system. The study involved random assignment of either system to all adult patients who required urinary catheterization. Criteria for exclusion included acute or chronic genitourinary tract infection and surgical interference with bladder function. The end point of the study was removal of any part of the system after at least 24 hours or a positive urine culture (greater than 10,000 colonies per ml. urine). The series included 236 patients. Distributions of patient age, sex and hospital service assignment (medical or surgical), antibiotic usage and duration of catheterization were similar in both study groups. Of 113 patients with the top-vented system 16 (14.2 per cent) acquired bacteriuria, whereas 13 of 123 (10.6 per cent) with the bag-drainage system acquired bacteriuria. No significant difference was noted. Antibiotics were used in 202 of 236 patients (86 per cent). Although usage delayed the appearance of bacteriuria in both groups isolates were more frequently yeasts and gram-negative organisms other than Escherichia coli.     

Urinary tract infection in percutaneous surgery for renal calculi

Percutaneous extraction of renal stones is associated with a risk of infection, which sometimes can be severe as a result of the intraoperative introduction of a ureteral catheter, the nephroscopy itself and the fact that a nephrostomy tube sometimes is left in place. It generally is accepted that patients with a preoperative urinary tract infection should be covered during the operation by an appropriate antibiotic. However, the need for routine prophylactic antibiotic treatment in patients with sterile urine preoperatively still is a subject of debate. We report the bacteriological results of 126 cases of percutaneous extraction of renal stones. Of the patients 107 had sterile urine preoperatively and deliberately did not receive prophylactic antibiotics so that the mechanisms of urinary tract infection after percutaneous nephrolithotomy could be studied. Of these patients 37 (35 per cent) suffered a postoperative urinary tract infection, usually owing to Escherichia coli, streptococcus or staphylococcus. The responsible organism was isolated in the bladder urine only in 22 cases, in the nephrostomy tube in 2 and in both sites in 13. Eleven patients (10 per cent) presented with a fever of 38.5C or more. All of the infected patients received appropriate antibiotic therapy and there were only 2 bacteriological failures on long-term followup (5 per cent). A total of 19 patients had a urinary tract infection preoperatively. All 19 patients received appropriate antibiotic therapy starting at least 24 hours preoperatively and continuing for a minimum of 3 weeks. Five patients (26 per cent) presented with a fewer but there were no serious septic complications. All of the patients were discharged from the hospital with sterile urine and there was only 1 long-term bacteriological failure (5 per cent). Both patients with Pseudomonas infection were cured. The risk of clinical infection following percutaneous nephrolithotomy is low despite the fact that 35 per cent of the patients have bacteriuria postoperatively, provided a careful bacteriological examination is performed preoperatively and the patients with urinary tract infection are treated appropriately. These results are in favor of short-term prophylactic antibiotics adapted to the bacterial ecology.     

Pyuria: index of infection in patients with spinal cord injuries.

Little is known about the significance of pyuria in patients with spinal cord injuries. The progress in hospital of 55 such patients was studied. They were divided into 2 groups according to the method of bladder drainage on admission. Group A comprised 43 patients with indwelling catheters. Group B comprised 12 patients who were able to void with tapping, with/without compression and on intermittent catheterisation. The results showed that group A had a mean pyuria level of 185 WBC/HPF on admission. The incidence of urinary tract infection was 4 per patient during hospitalisation and the mean duration of bladder training was 82 days. Group B had a mean pyuria level of 32 WBC/HPF on admission. The incidence of urinary tract infection was 1 per patient during hospitalisation and the mean duration of bladder training was 40 days. The difference between groups A and B for all 3 parameters was statistically significant. These results suggest that patients with spinal cord injuries and indwelling catheters have a higher pyuria level and an increased risk of significant morbidity secondary to urinary tract infection, especially at the pyuria level of 100 WBC/HPF. A low pyuria level of less than or equal to 30 WBC/HPF was associated with a nil or low incidence of bacteriuria and urinary tract infection in our patients.     

Isolation of anaerobic organisms from kidney in serious renal infections

We have studied 45 patients who underwent nephrectomy owing to unilateral renal sepsis for anaerobic and aerobic bacterial growth in the urine and kidney. Anaerobic organisms were recovered from 11 patients: 10 had positive kidney cultures, and only 1 had positive kidney and urine cultures. There was a distinct relationship between anaerobic infection of the kidney and urinary tract obstruction: 44 per cent of the obstructed kidneys yielded anaerobic organisms versus only 11 per cent of the unobstructed kidneys. Bacteroides fragilis was the anaerobic organism most often cultured. It is suggested that cultures for anaerobic organisms be performed together with aerobic cultures in patients with symptomatic upper urinary tract infections associated with urinary obstruction. In patients in whom anaerobic infection is suspected, in spite of negative anaerobic cultures, antibiotic treatment for anaerobes should be added to the existing therapeutic measures.     

The course of pyuria after transurethral resection of the prostate and factor analysis of its duration

The course of pyuria and bacteriuria was reviewed in 54 patients undergoing transurethral resection of prostate. Pyuria, which was seen in all cases, lasted for 70.1 +/- 24.7 days and bacteriuria defined as more than 10(4)/ml occurred in 16 patients (30%) postoperatively. To analyze the factors affecting the duration of pyuria, we utilized Hayashi's multidimensional quantification I theory. The factors included age, serum protein, preoperative indwelling catheter, preoperative urinary tract infection, resected weight, postoperative infection, the duration of postoperative indwelling catheter, and the way of antibacterial prophylaxis. The most important factor was resected weight (range 42.8 days), the second was postoperative infection (range 23.9 days) and the third preoperative infection (range 20.9 days). The other factors had no significance. Our analysis showed good correlation between the observed and predicted duration of pyuria (r = 0.82, p less than 0.005).     

Indwelling urinary catheter infections in small community hospital. Role of urinary drainage bag

Ninety cases of closed drainage urinary catheterization were studied by daily bacteriologic monitoring with Microstix. In 23 per cent of the patients bacteriuria developed, and 92.6 per cent of all catheter infections occurred within three days. These infections occurred primarily in postsurgical patients, and were probably related to initial contamination during catheter insertion. Only 1 patient had a positive drainage bag urine culture prior to the development of bladder bacteriuria. At our institution poor catheter technique was much more important as a risk factor of nosocomial urinary tract infection than an antiseptic drainage bag system.     

Bacterial study of clean intermittent catheterisation in children

Deterioration of the upper urinary tract is exceptional in children on clean intermittent catheterisation for neuropathic incontinence and is found only in those with pre-existing renal damage. This report describes a bacteriological study of 24 children, of whom 10 had renal damage and 14 did not have renal damage before clean intermittent catheterisation began. Boric acid was added as a preservative to samples of urine in preference to the use of dip-slides because it preserves pus cells as well as bacteria. The incidence of bacteriuria in the two groups was similar (78% of samples from those with, and 72% of samples from those without, pre-existing renal damage). The groups differed in that the urine of children in the group with pre-existing renal damage yielded organisms other than Escherichia coli more than twice as often as did the urine of those children without renal damage. Moreover, the children with pre-existing renal damage were more likely to have fever with urinary tract infection and some of them showed frequent changes of organisms in the urine. Whatever organism was present, however, children in the group with renal damage more often had heavy pyuria.     

Effect of cranberry extract on bacteriuria and pyuria in persons with neurogenic bladder secondary to spinal cord injury

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether antibacterial effects of cranberry extract will reduce or eliminate bacteriuria and pyuria in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI). DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were people with SCI residing in the community who were 1 year or longer postinjury with neurogenic bladder managed by intermittent catheterization or external collection device and a baseline urine culture demonstrating at least 10(5) colonies per milliliter of bacteria. METHODS: Each participant ingested 2 g of concentrated cranberry juice or placebo in capsule form daily for 6 months. Baseline urinalysis and cultures were performed at the time of the initial clinic visit and monthly for 6 months. Microbiologic data were evaluated using analysis of variance with repeated measures. RESULTS: Twenty-six persons received cranberry extract and 22 persons received placebo. There were no differences or trends detected between participants and controls with respect to number of urine specimens with bacterial counts of at least 10(4) colonies per milliliter, types and numbers of different bacterial species, numbers of urinary leukocytes, urinary pH, or episodes of symptomatic urinary tract infection. CONCLUSION: Cranberry extract taken in capsule form did not reduce bacteriuria and pyuria in persons with SCI and cannot be recommended as a means to treat these conditions.     

The clinical significance of Staphylococcus aureus bacteriuria

To investigate the rate of occurrence, clinical presentation, predisposing factors and frequency of secondary bacteremia 132 patients with significant Staphylococcus aureus bacteriuria were reviewed retrospectively. Staphylococcus aureus accounted for 3.3 per cent of all positive urine cultures. Most patients were elderly men. The most important predisposing factors in the urinary tract were indwelling catheters (63 per cent), obstruction (56 per cent) and instrumentation or surgery (43 per cent). Bacteremia developed secondary to bacteriuria in all 11 patients (8.3 per cent). For that reason Staphylococcus aureus bacteriuria should be regarded as a hazardous condition, especially in patients with predisposing factors in the urinary tract.     

Is antibiotic administration indicated after outpatient cystoscopy

The incidence of urinary tract infection was examined in 138 patients who underwent diagnostic cystoscopy in an outpatient clinical setting with preoperatively sterile urine. A prospective randomized trial was conducted to compare the incidence of infection in patients who received no antibiotic (controls, group 1) and those who received a postoperative course of oral antibiotics (group 2). The incidence of bacteriuria after cystoscopy was 2.8 per cent in group 1 (control) and 1.5 per cent in group 2, with an over-all incidence of 2.2 per cent. Only 1 patient presented with a symptomatic infection (0.7 per cent). This study has confirmed the safety of outpatient cystoscopy and has demonstrated that routine administration of postoperative antibiotics is not indicated.     

Quantitation of urinary Tamm-Horsfall protein in children with urinary tract infection.

It has been suggested that urinary Tamm-Horsfall protein (THP) prevents colonization of the urinary tract by binding uropathogens. We tested the hypothesis that low urinary THP levels may predispose to urinary tract infection (UTI) by measuring THP levels in children. We studied a cohort of 35 girls with uncomplicated recurrent UTI (group 1) that was compared with 27 patients with myelomeningoceles undergoing clean intermittent catheterization (group 2) and 16 female controls (group 3). We measured urinary THP in both aggregated (aTHP) and disaggregated form (dTHP), leukocyte esterase activity, urine chemistries and culture. No significant differences in dTHP or aTHP levels were seen between groups 1 and 3, but group-1 patients had higher dTHP levels than group-2 patients (p < 0.008). History of reflux or the presence of bacteriuria or pyuria at the time of urine collection did not affect dTHP levels; in contrast, pyuria or bacteriuria at the time of sampling was associated with markedly lower aTHP levels when compared with sterile samples (p < 0.0001). For all groups, measured quantities of dTHP did not correlate with aTHP levels. We conclude that excretion of dTHP in children with history of recurrent UTI is not reduced. In contrast, concentrations of aTHP are profoundly depressed in children during times of UTI, suggesting a role for THP in the pathogenesis of UTI. Assaying THP in its aggregated form may prove valuable when studying its physiologic function and merits further investigation.     

Mortality and morbidity in pretransplant bilateral nephrectomy: analysis of 305 cases.

The surgical riks were analyzed in 305 patients with end stage renal failure who underwent bilateral nephrectomy through midabdominal approach in preparation for kidney transplantation. The over-all mortality rate was 3.6 per cent. Age was the most significant risk factor in the mortality. Patients less than fifty years of age had an operative mortality rate of 3.1 per cent while those more than fifty years had an operative mortality of 11.1 per cent. Other pertinent risk factors were preoperative complications of renal failure and additional surgical procedures at the time of bilateral nephrectomy. The leading causes of death were those of cardiovascular complications and infection. The morbidity rate was 58.7 per cent being major in 18 per cent and minor in 40.7 per cent. Bilateral nephrectomy is recommended selectively in patients with (1) chronic pyelonephritis with urinary tract infection, (2) major vesicoureteral reflux, (3) immunologically active glomerulonephritis, (4) severe hypertension uncontrollable by adequate dialysis, and (5) extremely large or infected polycystic kidneys.