ABSTRACT
Urine culture is the gold standard in the diagnosis of a Urinary Tract Infection (UTI). More simple tests are often used instead of urine cultures. To compare the sensitivity and specificity of the urine nitrite test and gram staining with urine culture, a cross-sectional study was conducted at RSUP H Adam Malik, from February to July 2017, with participants recruited by consecutive sampling. The data collected were sample characteristics, clinical manifestations, causal organisms, nitrite test, gram staining and urine culture results. The data were analysed using Fisher’s exact test with p < 0.05. A total of 60 samples were included. The organism encountered was Escherichia coli. The most frequent clinical manifestation was fever, exhibited by 37 children with UTIs. The sensitivity and specificity of the nitrate test were 64.8% and 86.9%, respectively, while the sensitivity and specificity of gram staining were 94.5% and 100%, respectively. Gram staining is a good alternative test for diagnosing UTIs, but nitrite testing still needs further research.
