Study design: Prospective, non-randomized study.
Objectives: To assess the incidence of urinary tract infection after urodynamics in patients with spinal cord injury.
Setting: Outpatient clinic of a university hospital in Germany.
Methods: Urinary tract infection and clinical symptoms in 109 consecutive outpatients with spinal cord injury following urodynamic evaluation were studied.
Results: Data from 72 patients were evaluable. Of these, seven patients (9.7%) developed a significant urinary tract infection. Five of these were symptomatic. Pre-existing asymptomatic bacteriuria was not associated with a higher risk for post-interventional infection. The technique of the bladder management did not correlate with urinary tract infection rates.
Conclusion: In this study, symptomatic urinary tract infections after cystometry were not infrequent. Therefore, it seems that antibiotic prophylaxis cannot be omitted in patients with spinal cord injury undergoing urodynamic investigation.