Dear Editor
We read the article entitled “Asymptomatic bacteriuria in diabetes mellitus patients in Southwest Cameroon”, with great interest. As stated by the authors, asymtomatic bacteriuria (ASB) is a major concern in diabetics and especially in this group there is insufficient and discrepancy information on the occurence.1
The diagnosis of ASB is the most important step in managing ASB. As stated at the article the most important point for diagnosis is microbiological tests. In this context the number of specimens for culture is crucial. In guidelines ASB in men is defined as the isolation of ≥ 105 cfu/mL bacteria in a single clean-catch voided urine specimen. On the other hand in women, two consecutive urine specimen is needed for an accurate diagnosis.2,3 However in the present study, authors did not define the number urine cultures in women. Whereas number of urine culture is crucial in women. We cannot say it is not contamination with only one positive culture.
References
- 1.Bissong ME, Fon PN, Tabe-Besong FO, Akenji TN. Asymptomatic bacteriuria in diabetes mellitus patients in Southwest Cameroon. Afr Health Sci. 2013 Sep;13(3):661–666. doi: 10.4314/ahs.v13i3.20. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- 2.Nicolle LE, Bradley S, Colgan R, Rice JC, Schaeffer A, Hooton TM. Infectious Diseases Society of America; American Society of Nephrology; American Geriatric Society. Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of asymptomatic bacteriuria in adults. Clin Infect Dis. 2005 Mar 1;40(5):643–654. doi: 10.1086/427507. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
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