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Final Recommendation Statement

Asymptomatic Bacteriuria in Adults: Screening

July 15, 2008

Recommendations made by the USPSTF are independent of the U.S. government. They should not be construed as an official position of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

This Recommendation is out of date

It has been replaced by the following: Asymptomatic Bacteriuria in Adults: Screening (2019)

Recommendation Summary

Population Recommendation Grade
Pregnant Women at 12 to 16 Weeks' Gestation The USPSTF recommends screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria with urine culture for pregnant women at 12 to 16 weeks' gestation or at their first prenatal visit, if later. A
Men and Nonpregnant Women The USPSTF recommends against screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria in men and nonpregnant women. D

Clinician Summary

This document is a summary of the 2008 recommendation of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) on universal screening for hearing loss in newborns. This summary is intended for use by primary care clinicians.

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Population All Pregnant Women Men and Nonpregnant Women
Recommendation Screen with urine culture
Grade: A
Do not screen.
Grade: D
Detection and Screening Tests

Asymptomatic bacteriuria can be reliably detected through urine culture.

The presence of at least 105 colony-forming units per mL of urine, of a single uropathogen, and in a midstream clean-catch specimen is considered a positive test result.

Screening Intervals

A clean-catch urine specimen should be collected for screening culture at 12-16 weeks' gestation or at the first prenatal visit, if later.

The optimal frequency of subsequent urine testing during pregnancy is uncertain.

Do not screen.

Benefits of Detection and Early Treatment

The detection and treatment of asymptomatic bacteriuria with antibiotics significantly reduces the incidence of symptomatic maternal urinary tract infections and low birthweight.

Screening men and nonpregnant women for asymptomatic bacteriuria is ineffective in improving clinical outcomes.

Harms of Detection and Early Treatment

Potential harms associated with treatment of asymptomatic bacteriuria include:

  • Adverse effects from antibiotics.
  • Development of bacterial resistance.
Other Relevant USPSTF Recommendations

Additional USPSTF recommendations involving screening for infectious conditions during pregnancy can be found at here.

For the full recommendation statement and supporting documents (including a summary of the evidence) please go to https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org.

Copyright and Source Information

This document is in the public domain within the United States.

Requests for linking or to incorporate content in electronic resources should be sent via the USPSTF contact form.

Recommendation Information

Full Recommendation:

Recommendations made by the USPSTF are independent of the U.S. government. They should not be construed as an official position of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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Importance: In pregnant women, asymptomatic bacteriuria has been associated with an increased incidence of pyelonephritis and low birthweight (birthweight <2500 g).

Detection: Asymptomatic bacteriuria can be reliably detected through urine culture. The presence of at least 105 colony-forming units per mL of urine, of a single uropathogen, and in a midstream clean-catch specimen is considered a positive test result.

Benefits of Detection and Early Intervention: In pregnant women, convincing evidence indicates that detection of and treatment for asymptomatic bacteriuria with antibiotics significantly reduces the incidence of symptomatic maternal urinary tract infections and low birthweight.

In men and nonpregnant women, adequate evidence suggests that screening men and nonpregnant women for asymptomatic bacteriuria is ineffective in improving clinical outcomes.

Harms of Detection and Early Treatment: Potential harms associated with treatment for asymptomatic bacteriuria include adverse effects from antibiotics and development of bacterial resistance. Without evidence of benefits from screening men and nonpregnant women, the potential harms associated with overuse of antibiotics are especially significant.

USPSTF Assessment: The USPSTF concludes that 1) in pregnant women, there is high certainty that the net benefit of screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria is substantial, and 2) in men and nonpregnant women, there is moderate certainty that the harms of screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria outweigh the benefits.

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Patient Population

This recommendation applies to the general adult population, including adults with diabetes. The USPSTF did not review evidence for screening certain groups at high risk for severe urinary tract infections, such as transplant recipients, patients with sickle cell disease, and patients with recurrent urinary tract infections.

Screening Tests

The screening tests used commonly in the primary care setting (dipstick analysis and direct microscopy) have poor positive and negative predictive value for detecting bacteriuria in asymptomatic persons.1 Urine culture is the gold standard for detecting asymptomatic bacteriuria but is expensive for routine screening in populations with a low prevalence of the condition. However, no currently available tests have a high enough sensitivity and negative predictive value in pregnant women to replace the urine culture as the preferred screening test.2

Treatment

Pregnant women with asymptomatic bacteriuria should receive antibiotic therapy directed at the cultured organism and follow-up monitoring.

Screening Intervals

All pregnant women should provide a clean-catch urine specimen for a screening culture at 12 to 16 weeks' gestation or at the first prenatal visit, if later. The optimal frequency of subsequent urine testing during pregnancy is uncertain.

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Research Needs/Gaps

Further research is needed to clarify the optimal timing and periodicity of screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria in pregnant women. Research is also needed to develop a screening test that could reduce the use of urine culture, which is labor-intensive and more costly than other urine tests.

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In 2004, the USPSTF reviewed the evidence on screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria in adults and recommended screening pregnant women.3 In 2008, the USPSTF performed a brief literature review2 and determined that the net benefit of screening pregnant women and the net harm of screening men and nonpregnant women continue to be well established. The update included a search for new and substantial evidence on the benefits and harms of screening. The USPSTF found no new substantial evidence that could change its recommendation and, therefore, reaffirms its recommendation to screen pregnant women, but not men or nonpregnant women, for asymptomatic bacteriuria. The previous recommendation statement and evidence report,4 as well as the 2008 summary of the updated literature search can be found at https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org.

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The American Academy of Family Physicians strongly recommends that all pregnant women be screened for asymptomatic bacteriuria using urine culture at 12 to 16 weeks' gestation or at the first prenatal visit if after that time.5

The Infectious Diseases Society of America recommends screening pregnant women for asymptomatic bacteriuria with a urine culture "at least once" in early pregnancy. It also states that screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria in nonpregnant women, diabetic women, or community-dwelling or institutionalized older persons is not indicated.6

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommend screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria "early in pregnancy, as appropriate".7

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria in nonpregnant women with diabetes mellitus.8

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Ned Calonge, MD, MPH, Chair (Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Denver, Colorado); Diana B. Petitti, MD, MPH , Vice Chair (Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Sierra Madre, California); Thomas G. DeWitt, MD (Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio); Allen Dietrich, MD (Dartmouth Medical School, Lebanon, New Hampshire); Kimberly D. Gregory, MD, MPH (Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California); Russell Harris, MD, MPH (University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina); George Isham, MD, MS (HealthPartners, Minneapolis, Minnesota); Michael L. LeFevre, MD, MSPH (University of Missouri School of Medicine, Columbia, Missouri); Rosanne Leipzig, MD, PhD (Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York); Carol Loveland-Cherry, PhD, RN (University of Michigan School of Nursing, Ann Arbor, Michigan); Lucy N. Marion, PhD, RN (School of Nursing, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia); Bernadette Melnyk, PhD, RN, CPNP/NPP (Arizona State College of Nursing and Healthcare Innovation, Phoenix, Arizona); Virginia A. Moyer, MD, MPH (University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas); Judith K. Ockene, PhD (University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts); George F. Sawaya, MD (University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California); and Barbara P. Yawn, MD, MSPH, MSc (Olmsted Medical Center, Rochester, Minnesota).

*Members of the Task Force at the time this recommendation was finalized. For a list of current Task Force members, go to https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/about-uspstf/current-members.

Disclaimer: Recommendations made by the USPSTF are independent of the U.S. government. They should not be construed as an official position of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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  1. Screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria. In: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 2nd ed. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 1996:347-59.
  2. Lin K, Fajardo K. Screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria in adults: evidence for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force reaffirmation recommendation statement. Ann Intern Med. 2008;149:W-20-4.
  3. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Screening for Asymptomatic Bacteriuria: Recommendation Statement. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 2004.
  4. Gartlehner G, Kahwati L, Lux L, West S. Screening for Asymptomatic Bacteriuria: A Brief Evidence Update for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; February 2004. AHRQ Publication No. 05-0551-B.
  5. American Academy of Family Physicians. Summary of recommendations for clinical preventive services. Revision 6.4. August 2007. 
  6. Nicolle LE, Bradley S, Colgan R, Rice JC, Schaeffer A, Hooton TM, et al. Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of asymptomatic bacteriuria in adults. Clin Infect Dis 2005;40:643-54. [PMID: 15714408]
  7. American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Guidelines for Perinatal Care, 6th ed. Elk Grove Village, IL, and Washington, DC: American Academy of Pediatrics and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; 2007:100-1.
  8. ACOG Committee Opinion No. 357: Primary and preventive care: periodic assessments. Obstet Gynecol 2006;108:1615-22. [PMID: 17138804]
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