Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Bacteriuria found in dogs without urinary infection signs
By McGhie, J A et al.·Published in Australian veterinary journal·2014·School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Australia·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Prevalence of bacteriuria in dogs without clinical signs of urinary tract infection presenting for elective surgical procedures.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 140 dogs scheduled for elective surgery had their urine tested for bacteria, even though they showed no signs of a urinary tract infection. Only 3 dogs (2.1%) tested positive for bacteria, all of which were female and had a specific type of bacteria called Escherichia coli. The study found that the urine tests were not very reliable, meaning that a positive test didn't always mean there was an infection. Because of this, it's recommended that vets perform a urine culture before deciding on treatment for urinary issues.
People also search for: dog urinary tract infection signs · dog urine test results explained · why is my dog peeing frequently
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To determine the frequency of bacteriuria in dogs presenting for elective surgery, to compare the frequency of bacteriuria in dogs presenting for orthopaedic (non-neurological) procedures to that of dogs presenting for soft tissue procedures and to measure the agreement of microscopic visualisation of bacteria in urine sediment with the occurrence of bacterial growth on culture. METHODS: Prospective cohort study of 140 client-owned dogs. Urine was collected via prepubic cystocentesis prior to or immediately after induction of anaesthesia. Urine was submitted for quantitative bacteriological culture and urinalysis. The dogs' age, sex, weight and breed were recorded, as well as the surgical procedure performed. RESULTS: In total, 80 orthopaedic and 60 soft tissue surgical cases were included in the study; 3 dogs (2.1%) returned bacterial growth on culture (positive urine culture) and 19 (13.6%) recorded urine sediment with pyuria and/or bacteriuria on urinalysis (positive urinalysis). All dogs with positive urine culture were female and two of them underwent orthopaedic procedures. Each bitch had growth of Escherichia coli >10(5)  CFU/mL. The agreement between positive urinalysis and positive urine culture was poor (κ = 0.15). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of bacteriuria in dogs without clinical signs of urinary tract infection in this population was low (2.1%). An at-risk population could not be identified because of the small number of positive outcomes. A positive urinalysis showed poor agreement with urine culture results and therefore the decision to treat without performing a urine culture is not advised.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24471880/