(Evaluation of reagent strips in detecting asymptomatic bacteriuria in early pregnancy: prospective case series)

Asymptomatic bacteriuria (bacteria in the urine suggesting illness, which is unnoticed by the patient) is a potentially serious clinical condition in pregnant women. In a paper in this week's BMJ, Tincello and Richmond note that early antenatal urine screening should identify all cases to ensure adequate treatment is administered. In their study, the authors found that reagent strips for testing urine do not perform to a sufficient standard and therefore they advocate that all patients should have at least one urine specimen formally cultured in early pregnancy to exclude bacteriuria.

Contact:

Dr Douglas Tincello, Research Registrar, Department of Urogynaecology, Liverpool Women's Hospital, Liverpool