Assessing the potential of urinary dipstick testing to guide empirical antibiotic treatment for urinary tract infections in patients admitted to the emergency department: a cross-sectional study

This study of 4,724 bacteriuria cases evaluated if urinary nitrites could guide empiric therapy. Nitrites lacked sensitivity and specificity, failing to accurately distinguish gram-positive from gram-negative pathogens. Because gram-positive infections correlate with age and comorbidities, clinicians should rely on patient characteristics rather than dipstick results to guide empiric antibiotic coverage.