A study, published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, examined short-and long-term survival rates of patients with catheter-associated urinary tract infection and the impact of the empirical antibiotic treatment on survival rates.
Empirical antibiotic treatment is given based on physician observations and experience.
Researchers conducted a prospective, observational study with 315 consecutive adult patients suffering from a chronic indwelling CAUTI and sepsis. The patients were hospitalized in medical departments.
Researchers found the crude 30-day all-cause mortality rate was 30.8 percent, while the median survival time was 82 days. Appropriate early empirical treatment with antibiotics had no statistically significant association with 30-day mortality. Additionally, empirical antibiotic treatment was not statistically associated with long-term survival.
"Avoiding empirical antibiotics for CAUTI might be an important antibiotic stewardship intervention in hospitals," study authors concluded.