Urine Bacteriology in Post-Kidney Transplant Patients with Double-J Stents

Background: Kidney transplantation is the gold standard treatment modality for patients with end-stage renal disease. Ureteric stenting is commonly used during kidney transplantation to reduce the incidence of ureteric complications post-transplantation. The presence of ureteric stents could be complicated by bacterial colonisation and urinary tract infections. Objective: To identify the urinary flora in patients with double-J stents following kidney transplantation and establish bacteria colonisation and their antimicrobial susceptibility. Methods: Over one-year, single urine samples of consecutive 100 post-renal transplant patients were subjected to bacteriologic analysis. Early morning midstream urine was obtained into a sterile bottle from all the participants for laboratory analysis. Results: The mean age of post kidney transplantation patients was 47.6 ±12.3 years. Hypertension and diabetes were the commonest co-morbidities associated with End-Stage-Renal-Disease (ESRD), accounting for 61% and 28%, respectively. E. coli was the commonest isolate (70.4%). Microbiological evidence of Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) revealed by pyuria (pus cells >4/HPF) was found in 40.9%. Tigecycline, nitrofurantoin and tetracycline showed the highest sensitivity pattern in 9%, 8% and 8%, respectively, with significant resistance against cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones. Conclusion: The fourth week of double-J ureteric stent insertion in kidney transplant recipients showed a high incidence of urinary bacterial colonisation.