Observations of Bacterial Biofilm on Ureteral Stent and Studies on the Distribution of Pathogenic Bacteria and Drug Resistance.

Objective: This study aims to observe the morphological characteristics of bacterial biofilm on the surface of ureteral stents and analyze distribution characteristics of pathogens on the bacterial biofilm and drug resistance.

Methods: Ureteral stents were sampled from 129 patients. A scanning electron microscope was used to observe the morphological characteristics of bacterial biofilms, and the Congo red medium was applied to screen bacterial biofilm strains on the renal pelvis section, ureter section, and bladder section respectively. Urine culture was performed, and the drug sensitive test analysis was carried out for the pathogenic bacteria detected.

Results: Bacterial biofilms can be observed on the surface of ureteral stents, and these bacteria are embraced by large amounts of fiber membranes. A total of 107 patients were found to be positive for biofilms with a positive rate of 82.9%. The positive rates of the bladder section, ureter section, renal pelvis section, and urine culture were 85.0, 42.9, 67.3, and 24.3% respectively. Pathogenic bacteria mainly concentrated on Escherichia coli, and the drug resistance rate of the bacterial biofilm strains on the ureteral stent was relatively higher.

Conclusion: The bacterial biofilm on the ureteral stent is an important factor that induces catheter-associated urinary tract infections.