Peri-interventional antibiotic prophylaxis only vs continuous low-dose antibiotic treatment in patients with JJ stents: A prospective randomised trial analysing the effect on urinary tract infections and stent-related symptoms - Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the antibiotic treatment regime in patients with indwelling JJ stents, the benefits and disadvantages of a peri-interventional antibiotic prophylaxis were compared with those of a continuous low-dose antibiotic treatment in a prospective randomised trial.

Patients and Methods: In all, 95 patients were randomised to either receive peri-interventional antibiotic prophylaxis during stent insertion only (group A, 44 patients) or to additionally receive a continuous low-dose antibiotic treatment until stent removal (group B, 51). Evaluations for urinary tract infections (UTI), stent-related symptoms (SRSs) and drug side-effects were performed before stent insertion and consecutively after 1, 2 and 4 weeks and/or at stent withdrawal. All patients received a peri-interventional antibiotic prophylaxis with 1.2 g amoxicillin/clavulanic acid. Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (625 mg) once daily was administered for continuous low-dose treatment (group B). Primary endpoints were the overall rates of UTIs and SRSs. Secondary endpoints were the rates and severity of drug side-effects.

Results: Neither the overall UTI rates (group A: 9% vs group B: 10%), nor the rates of febrile UTIs (group A: 7% vs group B: 6%) were different between the groups. Similarly, SRS rates did not differ (group A: 98% vs group B: 96%). Antibiotic side-effect symptoms were to be increased in patients treated with low-dose antibiotics.

Conclusion: A continuous antibiotic low-dose treatment during the entire JJ stent-indwelling time does not reduce the quantity or severity of UTIs and has no effect on SRSs either compared with a peri-interventional antibiotic prophylaxis only.

Written by:
Moltzahn F, Haeni K, Birkhäuser FD, Roth B, Thalmann GN, Zehnder P   Are you the author?
Department of Urology, University of Bern, Switzerland

Reference: BJU Int. 2013 Feb;111(2):289-95
doi: 10.1111/j.1464-410X.2012.11592.x


PubMed Abstract
PMID: 23253774