IDSA releases new guidelines for management and treatment of complicated urinary tract infections

Recommendations will help clinicians improve patient care and reduce unnecessary antibiotic use 

The Infectious Diseases Society of America released new guidelines for management and treatment of complicated urinary tract infections. Previous guidelines focused on uncomplicated cystitis and pyelonephritis in women, neglecting cUTIs and any urinary tract infections in men. 

The updated guidelines simplify the prior definitions of uncomplicated UTIs and cUTIs, defining the former as infection confined to the bladder in women or men and the latter as infection that has progressed beyond the bladder. The guidelines also address treatment for cUTIs, including antibiotic selection, duration and the timing of the intravenous to oral antibiotics switch. 

“With an aging population, new guidelines were needed to address treatment for UTIs in both women and men,” said Barbara Trautner, MD, PhD, FIDSA, co-chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Washington University in St. Louis and lead author of the guidelines. “Managing complicated UTIs is difficult. IDSA’s new guidelines are intended to support clinicians from many different disciplines with the latest scientific knowledge on how to manage complicated UTIs. These guidelines have been informed by patient perspectives.”

The new guidelines serve as an update to the 2010 IDSA guidelines on the topic. 

In addition to Dr. Trautner, guideline authors include co-chair Valéry Lavergne, MD, MSc, FRCPC; Nicolás W. Cortés-Penfield, MD, FIDSA; Kalpana Gupta, MD, MPH; Elizabeth B. Hirsch, PharmD, FCCP, FIDSA, FIDP; Molly Horstman, MD, MS; Gregory J. Moran, MD, FACEP, FIDSA; Richard Colgan, MD; John C. O’Horo, MD, MPH, FACP; Muhammad S. Ashraf, MBBS, FIDSA; Shannon Connolly, MD, FAAFP; Dimitri M. Drekonja, MD, MS, FACP, FIDSA;  Larissa Grigoryan, MD, PhD; Angela Huttner, MD; Gweneth B. Lazenby, MD;  Lindsay Nicolle, MD; Anthony Schaeffer, MD; and Sigal Yawetz, MD.
 

About IDSA 
The Infectious Diseases Society of America is a global community of 13,000 clinicians, scientists and public health experts working together to solve humanity’s smallest and greatest challenges, from tiny microbes to global outbreaks. Rooted in science, committed to health equity and driven by curiosity, our compassionate and knowledgeable members safeguard the health of individuals, our communities and the world by advancing the treatment and prevention of infectious diseases. Learn more at idsociety.org.