Methenamine hippurate may be effective for preventing UTI in patients without renal tract abnormalities, particularly when used for short-term prophylaxis. It does not appear to work in patients with neuropathic bladder or in patients who have renal tract abnormalities. The rate of adverse events was low, but poorly described.
There is a need for further large well-conducted RCTs to clarify this question, particularly for longer term use for people without neuropathic bladder.
Urinary antiseptics in asymptomatic bacteriuria of pregnancy.
A screening programme for the detection of asymptomatic bacteriuria in patients attending an antenatal clinic is described. The results obtained from the use of urinary antiseptics in a controlled trial over a period of two years are presented. The number of patients developing clinical pyelonephritis, fetal maturity at delivery and birth weight were recorded for treatment and control groups and compared with the equivalent results obtained from the total population of patients seen at the clinic.