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Antibiotics
Volume 14
Issue 7
10.3390/antibiotics14070723
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Trends in Positive Urine Culture Rates and Antimicrobial Resistance in Non-Hospitalized Children from Western Romania: A Retrospective Observational Study

by
Constantin Catalin Marc
1,2,†,
Maria Daniela Mot
2,†,
Monica Licker
3,4,
Delia Muntean
3,4,
Daniela Teodora Marti
2,
Ana Alexandra Ardelean
5,6,7,8,
Alina Ciceu
9,
Sergiu Adrian Sprintar
6,9,
Daniela Adriana Oatis
6,9,*,
Alin Gabriel Mihu
2,6,9,10,* and
Tudor Rares Olariu
5,6,7,8
1
Department of General Medicine, Doctoral School, Victor Babes University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
2
Department of Biology and Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Vasile Goldis Western University of Arad, 310025 Arad, Romania
3
Microbiology Department, Multidisciplinary Research Center of Antimicrobial Resistance, Victor Babes University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
4
Microbiology Laboratory, “Pius Brinzeu” County Clinical Emergency Hospital, 300723 Timisoara, Romania
5
Discipline of Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Victor Babes University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
6
Center for Diagnosis and Study of Parasitic Diseases, Department of Infectious Disease, Victor Babes University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
7
Patogen Preventia, 300124 Timisoara, Romania
8
Clinical Laboratory, Municipal Clinical Emergency Hospital, 300254 Timisoara, Romania
9
“Aurel Ardelean” Institute of Life Sciences, Vasile Goldis Western University of Arad, 86 Rebreanu, 310414 Arad, Romania
10
Bioclinica Medical Analysis Laboratory, Dreptatii Street, nr. 23, 310300 Arad, Romania
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Antibiotics 2025, 14(7), 723; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14070723
Submission received: 2 June 2025 / Revised: 15 July 2025 / Accepted: 15 July 2025 / Published: 18 July 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prevalence, Treatment and Antibacterial Resistance of Urinary Tract Infections)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Background: Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common types of infections during childhood. Limited data are available on the prevalence of UTI in children from Romania, with most being available for hospitalized children. For this reason, we conducted a retrospective observational study in consecutive non-hospitalized children to assess the number of positive UTI samples and the antibacterial resistance of causative pathogens. Methods: This study included 7222 consecutive urine cultures collected from children aged 1 to 18 years who are residents of Arad County, Western Romania. Urine samples were analyzed for leukocyturia and cultures for the presence of monomorphic bacteria. Results: The overall number of positive UTI samples was 10.44%. A higher number of positive UTI samples was observed in females when compared to males and in children aged 6–12 and 12 to 18 years when compared to those aged 1–5 years. The antibiotic susceptibility testing of E. coli isolates revealed high sensitivity to most tested antibacterials. Near-complete susceptibility was observed for fosfomycin (99.71%) and nitrofurantoin (96.01%), while high susceptibility rates were also observed for ciprofloxacin (85.43%) and amoxicillin–clavulanic acid (75.05%). In contrast, high resistance was found for ampicillin (62.28% resistant) and trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole (36.53% resistant). Conclusions: Given the clinical risks associated with UTI in children, our findings underscore the urgent need for the continued monitoring of multidrug-resistant strains. Our study provides important epidemiological and resistance data to guide empirical treatment and strengthen pediatric antimicrobial resistance surveillance. Future studies should focus on different regions and regularly update resistance patterns to keep treatment and prevention strategies aligned with local conditions.
Keywords: children; Romania; urinary tract infection; UTI; E. coli; Escherichia coli; antibiotic resistance children; Romania; urinary tract infection; UTI; E. coli; Escherichia coli; antibiotic resistance

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Marc, C.C.; Mot, M.D.; Licker, M.; Muntean, D.; Marti, D.T.; Ardelean, A.A.; Ciceu, A.; Sprintar, S.A.; Oatis, D.A.; Mihu, A.G.; et al. Trends in Positive Urine Culture Rates and Antimicrobial Resistance in Non-Hospitalized Children from Western Romania: A Retrospective Observational Study. Antibiotics 2025, 14, 723. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14070723

AMA Style

Marc CC, Mot MD, Licker M, Muntean D, Marti DT, Ardelean AA, Ciceu A, Sprintar SA, Oatis DA, Mihu AG, et al. Trends in Positive Urine Culture Rates and Antimicrobial Resistance in Non-Hospitalized Children from Western Romania: A Retrospective Observational Study. Antibiotics. 2025; 14(7):723. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14070723

Chicago/Turabian Style

Marc, Constantin Catalin, Maria Daniela Mot, Monica Licker, Delia Muntean, Daniela Teodora Marti, Ana Alexandra Ardelean, Alina Ciceu, Sergiu Adrian Sprintar, Daniela Adriana Oatis, Alin Gabriel Mihu, and et al. 2025. "Trends in Positive Urine Culture Rates and Antimicrobial Resistance in Non-Hospitalized Children from Western Romania: A Retrospective Observational Study" Antibiotics 14, no. 7: 723. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14070723

APA Style

Marc, C. C., Mot, M. D., Licker, M., Muntean, D., Marti, D. T., Ardelean, A. A., Ciceu, A., Sprintar, S. A., Oatis, D. A., Mihu, A. G., & Olariu, T. R. (2025). Trends in Positive Urine Culture Rates and Antimicrobial Resistance in Non-Hospitalized Children from Western Romania: A Retrospective Observational Study. Antibiotics, 14(7), 723. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14070723

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