Significance of Group B Streptococci in Urine Cultures from Males and Non-pregnant Females

Abstract

Over a 2-year period, 1% of 24000 urine cultures with possibly relevant bacteria from males and non-pregnant females >15 years of age were found to harbour group B streptococci (GBS) in quantities >10⁵ colony forming units (cfu)/ml; a further 0.9% harboured GBS in quantities >10⁴ but <10⁵ cfu/ml. Patients with GBS in urine were evenly distributed by age. Those with >10⁵ cfu GBS/ml in voided urine more frequently had true bacteriuria (i.e. bacteria in the urine bladder) than did patients with less amounts (p=0.01) as determined by suprapubic aspiration of 23 patients. One third (3/9) of the aspirated patients with >10⁵ cfu GBS/ml in simultaneously voided urine, had contaminated urine only and no true bacteriuria. The acute symptoms and clinical conditions of 128 patients with >10⁵ cfu GBS/ml urine were studied by matching 128 patients with negative urine cultures (<10² cfu/ml) and 128 patients with comparable quantity of Escherichia coli. The incidence of acute lower urinary tract symptoms in patients with GBS was greater than that in patients with negative urine cultures (p<0.01), and the same as that in patients with E. coli. The incidence of fever was lower in patients with GBS than in those with E. coli (p<0.01). The incidence of urinary tract abnormalities was greatest in patients with GBS in urine. No GBS serotype seems to have particular affinity to the urinary tract.