Om. Korzeniowski, HOST-DEFENSE MECHANISM IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF UTI AND UTI IN IMMUNOCOMPROMISED PATIENTS, International journal of antimicrobial agents, 4(2), 1994, pp. 101-106
Defects in the immune system determine the clinical manifestations and
severity of urinary tract infections (UTI) and the rates of complicat
ion but they only have an indirect role in influencing susceptibility
to infection. The rates of UTI in diabetics, renal transplant recipien
ts, neutropenic patients, and patients with AIDS are primarily determi
ned by the degree and duration of urinary tract manipulation and the h
igher perineal prevalence of potential pathogens that result from freq
uent hospitalization and antimicrobial use. Prompt recognition and tre
atment of established infections is critical to prevent life-threateni
ng complications (e.g. bacteremia, emphysematous pyelonephritis) but r
outine screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria is indicated only in kid
ney recipients less that 3 months post-transplantation.