Transient Bacteremia Immediately following Transurethral Prostatic Resection

Abstract

Blood and urine cultures prior to transurethral prostatic resection, as well as operative and postoperative blood cultures, were carried out on 106 patients to determine whether this type of operation, like tooth extraction . or tonsillectomy, may be associated with invasion of bacteria in the blood stream. Transient bacteremia was found in 13 of 106 patients (12.2%) after transurethral prostatic resection. In 7 of those patients with bacteremia, blood cultures obtained at 3-4 hrs. after operation were negative; in 3 others, the postoperative blood cultures drawn at the same interval were still positive; subsequent blood cultures, however, were negative. The organisms cultured most commonly from the blood stream were Escherichia coli and Micrococcus (species undetd.). Others included Micrococcus pyogenes. Pseudomonas. Aerobacter aerogenes. Streptococcus faecalis and Paracolobactrum. Similar organisms were cultured from urine obtained immediately pre-operatively and from blood withdrawn immediately post-operatively in 6 instances. This suggests that the urine may be one source of such transient bacteremia.