Assessment of anemia and low hemoglobin level as a risk factor for asymptomatic bacteriuria in women of reproductive and postmenopausal age

The Impact of anemia on the function of the immune system and eventually on infectious diseases is a challenging issue being debated for many years. Regarding the role of hemoglobin level in the function of the immune system, anemia may be an independent risk factor for developing different types of infection including asymptomatic bacteriuria and urinary tract infection. In this study, we address any association between anemia and low hemoglobin level and asymptomatic bacteriuria in women of reproductive and Postmenopausal age. In present study, 188 women of reproductive and Postmenopausal age (age above 15) with and without asymptomatic bacteriuria were enrolled in our study. The hemoglobin level of all participants was evaluated.  The patients with a hemoglobin level below 12 mg/dl were considered anemic. The association between anemia and low hemoglobin level and asymptomatic bacteriuria was evaluated and the correlation between any specific uropathogenic with Hb level was analyzed accordingly. We evaluated hemoglobin levels in positive and negative urine samples and also analyzed the association of specific uropathogenic with hemoglobin levels in patients with asymptomatic bacteriuria. The mean level of hemoglobin in all culture-positive samples was 11.65 mg/dl while it was 13.48 mg/dl in culture-negative samples. The mean hemoglobin level was 11.63 mg/dl and 11.72 mg/dl in E. coli and Non- E. coli positive urine cultures respectively. Our findings were consistent with previous studies that consider the anemic state as a risk factor for infection. Asymptomatic bacteriuria was significantly more common in anemic patients compared with non-anemic individuals.