Recurrent uUTI guideline: Renewed emphasis on symptom resolution

The American Urological Association, in collaboration with the Canadian Urological Association and the Society of Urodynamics, Female Pelvic Medicine & Urogenital Reconstruction, recently released an amendment to the guideline on recurrent uncomplicated urinary tract infections in women.¹ The amendment specifically places a renewed emphasis on symptom resolution over microbial eradication in defining treatment success.

In a recent interview with Urology Times®, guideline amendment chair A. Lenore Ackerman, MD, PhD, outlines this concept in-depth. Ackerman is a urogynecologist at the University of California, Los Angeles.

According to Ackerman, the rationale for renewed focus on this concept is due to the number of new approaches to testing that are available, which has led to confusion among patients and health care professionals on what to do with this information.

“We wanted to make sure to bring that focus back to the idea that we treat patients and not tests,” she explained. “If patients don't have symptoms, there's no need to treat them, and if they do have symptoms, we should be focused on managing the symptoms, regardless of what our tests say.”

This recommendation, she says, recognizes both the complexities of current testing methods as well as the need to bring the focus back to the patient and doing what is best for them.

REFERENCE

1. Recurrent Uncomplicated Urinary Tract Infections in Women: AUA/CUA/SUFU Guideline (2025). American Urological Association. Accessed September 4, 2025. https://www.auanet.org/guidelines-and-quality/guidelines/recurrent-uti