A Review on the Current and Future State of Urinary Tract Infection Diagnostics

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) constitute a severe global health problem, placing a significant burden on healthcare systems worldwide. These infections often lead to frequent hospitalizations, sick leaves, and serious post-infectious complications. One of the most critical aspects of UTI treatment is rapid and accurate identification of pathogens, which increasingly develop resistance to commonly used antibiotics, as well as to newer ones, despite the expectation of sustained efficacy. This alarming trend signals the widespread presence of strains equipped with multiple resistance factors. In this review, attention has been drawn to the current classification of UTIs based on age, gender, risk factors, and preferred treatment strategies. Additionally, this article reviews diagnostic solutions used in this matter, starting from those applied in routine diagnostics and ending with the latest, cutting-edge approaches that are gradually coming into use. Each method varies in its specificity, sensitivity, and costs of implementation, and therefore, the limitations associated with adopting these technologies in widespread UTI diagnostics are also discussed. The review emphasizes the need for further research to optimize these innovations and integrate them into broad clinical practice, ultimately enabling more effective combat against UTIs and limiting the spread of bacterial resistance.