Risk Groups for Urinary Tract Infections Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Risk Groups for Urinary Tract Infections - Essay Example Clinical physicians in medical microbiology categorize urinary tract infections into upper and lower tract infections on an anatomical basis. An infection of the bladder refers to cystitis and where the infection spreads to other areas, such as the ureters and the kidneys, the infection is pyelonephritis. Cystitis is, therefore, regarded as the lower urinary tract infection while pyelonephritis is the upper urinary tract infection. The latter is more severe and complicated than the former. In spite of the availability of several antibacterial factors such as urea concentration, pH, the salt content of the urine, osmolality, and other urinary tract inhibitors of bacterial adherence, several bacteria are still able to invade the urinary tract system. The bacteria predispose the patients to a variety of urinary tract infections. The common types of bacteria that correlate with a diverse range of urinary tract infections are the Gram-negative bacteria of E. coli and Klebsiella species. T he uropathogenic bacteria overcome the several urinary inhibitors to bacterial invasion such as the Tamm-Horsfall protein (THP), lactoferrins, low-molecular-weight oligosaccharides, bladder mucopolysaccharides, and secretory IgA. The bacteria, however, still adhere, grow, multiply, and resist against the host’s defence mechanisms even with the presence of bacteria inhibition factors and conditions. The result is massive colonization and subsequent urinary tract system infection (Stamm 2006, p. 2-4). The paper aims at reviewing the numerous bacteria that are responsible for the various urinary tract infections. It also highlights the laboratory diagnostic routine procedures used in the diagnosis of the bacteria in the most prone population groups, as well as, the infections exhibited by the general population. Many researchers and scholars in microbial urinary tract infections agree that the Gram-negative bacteria of E. coli and the bacteria associated with the Klebsiella species are the common organisms that cause urinary tract infections in both males and females.