Urinary Tract Infection in the Intensive Care Unit A Common Occurrence, but With Minimal Clarity

摘要

In this issue of the journal, Al Raiy et al review a very common problem in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. Al Raiy et al1 retrospectively reviewed 90 ICU patients with positive urine cultures (>=10~5 colony-forming units/mL). Their results demonstrated that clinicians often treat urinary tract infection (UTI) in the ICU based on urine culture result only in the absence of symptoms and in the presence of infections in other sites. They record that therapy with antibiotics was associated with higher incidence of diarrhea. With increased antimicrobial use, they raise the potential issues of higher cost and increased antimicrobial resistance. Al Raiy et al correctly conclude that "UTI treatment guidelines for ICU patients are urgently needed."