Single-dose versus 3-day cotrimoxazole prophylaxis in transurethral resection or greenlight laser vaporisation of the prostate: study protocol for a multicentre randomised placebo controlled non-inferiority trial (CITrUS trial)

Assessing peri-operative antibiotic administration practices amongst urologic surgeons performing holmium laser enucleation of the prostate worldwide

PURPOSE

Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate (HoLEP) is a size-independent surgical treatment for benign prostatic hypertrophy. There is currently a lack of data on peri-operative antibiotic prescribing patterns for HoLEP and, thus, no consensus on optimal practices. This study aims to assess peri-operative antibiotic prescribing practices for HoLEP.

METHODS

Members of the Endourological Society (EUS) were invited by e-mail to complete a REDCap survey. The survey inquired about surgeons' practice setting, training, surgical volume, antibiotic prescribing practices and explored different factors that might affect antibiotic choice and duration. A p-value of < 0.05 was determined to be statistically significant.

RESULTS

A total of 70 Urologists (66 male, 4 female) reported that they performed an average of 108 HoLEPs per year with a mean clinical experience of 11 years. In the case of a negative pre-operative urine culture with a patient who is not catheterized/intermittently self-catheterizing (C/ISC), 96% of urologists would only give a single peri-operative dose of antibiotic. If the patient is C/ISC then 49% of Urologists would give more than a single dose of peri-operative antibiotic when the urine culture is negative. If the pre-operative urine culture is negative, 39% of surgeons would prescribe post-operative antibiotics even when the patient is not C/ISC and this increased to 64% if the patient is C/ISC. The most common factors urologists considered when prescribing antibiotic prophylaxis/therapy were positive urine culture, catheterization status, and a history of recurrent UTIs. Non-academic urologists administered post-operative prophylaxis more often (p < 0.05) and urologists with more experience treated a positive urine culture for a shorter period.

CONCLUSION

There is significant variability for peri-operative antibiotic prescribing practices prior to HoLEP. In general, more antibiotics are prescribed if the patient has a history of C/ISC or infection. Further clinical studies are needed to identify optimal antibiotic prescribing protocols prior to HoLEP.

A meta-research study revealed several challenges in obtaining placebos for investigator-initiated drug trials

OBJECTIVES

To systematically assess the kind of placebos used in investigator-initiated randomized controlled trials (RCTs), from where they are obtained, and the hurdles that exist in obtaining them.

STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING

PubMed was searched for recently published noncommercial, placebo-controlled randomized drug trials. Corresponding authors were invited to participate in an online survey.

RESULTS

From 423 eligible articles, 109 (26%) corresponding authors (partially) participated. Twenty-one of 102 (21%) authors reported that the placebos used were not matching (correctly labeled in only one publication). The main sources in obtaining placebos were hospital pharmacies (32 of 107; 30%) and the manufacturer of the study drug (28 of 107; 26%). RCTs with a hypothesis in the interest of the manufacturer of the study drug were more likely to have obtained placebos from the drug manufacturer (18 of 49; 37% vs. 5 of 29; 17%). Median costs for placebos and packaging were US$ 58,286 (IQR US$ 2,428- US$ 160,770; n = 24), accounting for a median of 10.3% of the overall trial budget.

CONCLUSION

Although using matching placebos is widely accepted as a basic practice in RCTs, there seems to be no standard source to acquire them. Obtaining placebos requires substantial resources, and using nonmatching placebos is common.

High incidence of urinary tract infections after photoselective laser vaporisation of the prostate: a risk factor analysis of 665 patients

PURPOSE

Although photoselective laser vaporisation of the prostate (PVP) is a recognised alternative to transurethral resection in treating benign prostatic obstruction, there is limited data on the incidence and determinants of postoperative urinary tract infections (UTI). We assessed patients subjected to PVP, evaluating incidence and potential determinants of postoperative UTIs.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Consecutive patients undergoing PVP between April 2010 and August 2018 were candidates for this retrospective cohort study. The primary outcome measure was microbiologically confirmed postoperative UTI. We fitted uni- and multi-variable Cox models to identify potential risk factors.

RESULTS

Among the 665 included patients, 20% developed postoperative UTIs. The overall incidence rate per 100 patient-days was 0.65 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.55-0.77). Risk factors for postoperative UTIs were end-stage renal failure (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] = 14.10, 95% CI 2.08-64.58; p = 0.001) and presence of at least one of the following factors in the 3 months preceding PVP: (i) placement of urinary catheter, (ii) bacteriuria, (iii) UTI, or (iv) antimicrobial treatment (composite aHR = 1.99, 95% CI 1.22-3.24; p < 0.001). There was no apparent association between choice or duration of antimicrobial prophylaxis and incident UTIs.

CONCLUSIONS

Our analysis revealed a high incidence of UTIs after PVP and served to identify certain preoperative risk factors. Neither the choice of antimicrobial regimen nor its duration affected the incidence of UTIs. Prolonged antimicrobials proved to be disproportionately high, warranting further scrutiny in randomised controlled trials.