UROBIOME study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Urinary Microbiome and its Relation to Morbidity in Older People
IRAS ID
218830
Contact name
Claire Steves
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Kings College London
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Urinary symptoms and signs in the elderly are closely associated to frailty, delirium, agitation and distress. However, our understanding of the relationship between all the bugs in our body and our general health and wellbeing is not yet fully understood. Recent small-scale studies have showed that the urine of adults that are well may not be free from different bacteria and microorganism (a living thing that can only be seen with a microscope), as previously thought. These studies showed that the urine of people that are “well” actually contains significant of numbers of bacteria that can either benefits us or themselves, without us or them causing each other any harm. At the same time, doctors seeing these older people often find evidence of bacteria in simple urine tests (dipstick test), although culture results (where we grow and see these bacteria) fail to show evidence of a clear infection. Unfortunately, as these ‘culture results’ take several days to process, the older adult meanwhile receives unnecessary antibiotics intended to kill the bacteria the doctor thinks is present as a result of the dipstick test (gives a result straightaway). This can lead to antibiotic-related diarrhoea, and increase in antibiotic-resistance in the general population.
This study aims to help us understand; a) the different types of bacteria, especially bacteria in the urine, present in older adults and how they change with age b) understand th effect different groups of these bacteria can have on the overall health and well-being of the person that has these bacteria
REC name
London - Queen Square Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/LO/0646
Date of REC Opinion
5 May 2017
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion