[Intrauretheral devices and infection : common beliefs and scientific evidence]

Intrauretheral catheters, used for drainage of the upper urinary tract, are associated with mechanical and infectious complications. The risk of infection is associated with the duration of catheterization, the presence of comorbidities, and the clinical context. Microbial colonization of synthetic material, via the formation of a biofilm, is a known and expected phenomenon that is most often clinically insignificant but may be associated with an increased risk of infection, even though a direct causal link between colonization and symptomatic infection has not been established. The management of urinary tract infection and the interpretation of bacteriuria associated with an intrauretheral catheter, rely on an understanding of the interactions between the microbiome and synthetic materials.