Content area
Full text
In 2015, The Journal reported that over a 24-hour period at Auckland City Hospital there were 81 admissions with a diagnosis of urinary tract infection (UTI), which required a mean hospital stay of four days.1 UTIs are a common diagnosis with significant morbidity and costs, as well as the risk of more serious complication such as pyelonephritis and sepsis.
Urinary alkalisers are frequently prescribed for symptomatic relief in patients with acute cystitis. The latest invitation for sole supply from PHARMAC states that over two million sachets of effervescent sodium citro-tartrate are funded per year in New Zealand.
However, a 2016 Cochrane Review found no evidence to support or refute the use of urinary alkalisers among 172 trials and concluded that "Until relevant evidence is generated from randomised trials, the safety and efficacy of urinary alkalisers for the symptomatic treatment of uncomplicated UTI remains unknown".2
We sought...