Urinary Tract Infection - Epidemiology

Epidemiology

Urinary tract infections are the most frequent bacterial infection in women. They occur most frequently between the ages of 16 and 35 years, with 10% of women getting an infection yearly and 60% having an infection at some point in their lives. Recurrences are common, with nearly half of people getting a second infection within a year. Urinary tract infections occur four times more frequently in females than males. Pyelonephritis occurs between 20–30 times less frequently. They are the most common cause of hospital acquired infections accounting for approximately 40%. Rates of asymptomatic bacteria in the urine increase with age from two to seven percent in women of child bearing age to as high as 50% in elderly women in care homes. Rates of asymptomatic bacteria in the urine among men over 75 are between 7-10%.

Urinary tract infections may affect 10% of people during childhood. Among children urinary tract infections are the most common in uncircumcised males less than three months of age, followed by females less than one year. Estimates of frequency among children however vary widely. In a group of children with a fever, ranging in age between birth and two years, two to 20% were diagnosed with a UTI.