Acutis Insights

Trending clinical topic: Antibiotics for UTI

Written by Acutis | Feb 13, 2023 2:15:00 PM

 

UTI PCR + Guided AST Testing With Acutis Reveal

 
Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) involve the infection of any part of the urinary system including kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra. American Urological Association estimates that 150 million UTIs occur worldwide annually and cost up to $6 billion in healthcare costs. Unfortunately, UTIs can be difficult to diagnose and most often patients are treated based on symptoms alone which has an error rate of approximately 33%. Recent data reiterates that the antibiotic regimen for UTIs should be tailored to ensure an appropriate 'bug-drug match'.
 
A recent study involving over 670,000 young women diagnosed with UTIs is troublesome as almost half of the participants received an antibiotic that was inappropriate, and more than 75% were prescribed antibiotics for a longer duration than was necessary. Since many of these UTI pathogens are prime contributors to antimicrobial resistance (AMR), this data has prompted agencies to update prescribing guidelines to avoid the risk of further AMR.
 
While such guidelines would ultimately ameliorate the problem, as of now, diagnosing UTIs right away using prominent diagnostic tests like Acutis Revealâ„¢ UTI, a multiplex PCR-based test with 96-100% sensitivity and 100% specificity, is the way forward to ensure an appropriate 'bug-drug match'.