Does a Clean-Catch Urine Sample Reduce Bacterial Contamination?

To the Editor: Standard practice for collecting a urine specimen from women for bacterial culture includes cleansing of the perineum and urethral meatus before collection. To determine whether such cleansing affects the rate of bacterial contamination of midstream urine specimens, we studied 105 asymptomatic health care workers (Table 1). We did not exclude women who were pregnant, were menstruating, or had a known history of urinary tract infection or anatomical abnormality. Each woman collected two midstream urine samples during consecutive urinations. The first sample was not a clean-catch specimen, and the second was a clean-catch specimen. Both specimens were studied . . .