Urinary Tract Infections: Advances and Diagnostic Developments

This book discusses the advances as well as diagnostic developments in the field of urinary tract infections (UTI). Urinary tract infections are one of the most common bacterial infections worldwide. Their diagnosis and treatment inflict substantial economic burden on society. In the USA alone, UTIs account for more than 7 million physician visits annually and of all community-prescribed antibiotics in the USA, antibiotics dispensed for UTIs amount to almost 15%. Nearly half of the women population may experience at least one UTI episode during their lifetime and about 1 million emergency department visits annually occur due to UTI in the USA alone, resulting in more than 100,000 hospital admissions, mostly for pyelonephritis. Moreover, UTIs are also majorly responsible for hospital-acquired infections, accounting for approximately 40% of all such cases. Most of these cases are catheter-associated. Thus, nosocomial UTIs constitute perhaps the largest institutional reservoir for nosocomial antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Apart from economic implications, UTIs also impact the quality of life of affected people. This book highlights problematic areas and provides information regarding current developments in the field of UTIs.