McKnight's Long-Term Care News, April 2019, page 3, Bottom left

Updated asymptomatic bacteriuria guidelines released by the Infectious Diseases Society of America indicate that physicians may be overprescribing antibiotics for urinary tract infections.

“Screening these patients is far too common and leads to the inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics, which some studies suggest may actually increase the risk of a UTI, as well as contribute to other serious infections such as Clostridium difficile,” said Lindsay E. Nicolle, M.D.

Physicians should obtain cultures only when patients have symptoms consistent with an infection, such as burning during urination, she advised.