A preliminary assessment of asymptomatic bacteriuria of pregnancy in Brunei Darussalam

Background: Asymptomatic bacteriuria describes a condition in which urine culture reveals a significant growth of pathogenic bacteria, specifically greater than 105 of colony-forming units per millilitre of urine. It has a direct bearing on the health of a pregnant woman, her pregnancy and consequently the foetus. Thus, this study investigated the prevalence of asymptomatic bacteriuria of pregnancy in Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha (RIPAS) Hospital, the premiere tertiary hospital in Brunei Darussalam. Methods: A total of 170 pregnant women who were visiting the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at RIPAS Hospital for routine antenatal care between February and March 2011 volunteered for this cross-sectional study. They did not present with any clinical symptoms of bacteriuria or indeed any other illness. They were investigated for bacteriuria by urine microscopy, culture, and sensitivity. Results: Urine samples from seven of the women produced significant bacterial growth, showing a prevalence of 4.1%. The organisms isolated were Klebsiella species (2.94%) and Escherichia coli (1.18%)these bacteria were both sensitive to amoxicillin, vancomycin, tetracycline, and erythromycin. Conclusion: Brunei has a similar prevalence of asymptomatic bacteriuria to other South-East Asian countries