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Is bacterial prostatitis a urinary tract infection?

Diagnosis of urinary tract infection (UTI) includes anatomical distinctions because the severity of infection and treatment decisions depend on the infected organ; however, bacterial prostatitis is usually absent from discussions regarding UTI. By considering bacterial prostatitis a UTI, we can increase understanding of the pathogenesis and immune response in the prostate to develop improved therapeutics.

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Fig. 1: Lines of evidence supporting the argument for designating bacterial prostatitis as a UTI.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank K. Sfanos and B. Albrecht for insightful discussion.

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Correspondence to Molly A. Ingersoll.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Lupo, F., Ingersoll, M.A. Is bacterial prostatitis a urinary tract infection?. Nat Rev Urol 16, 203–204 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-019-0150-1

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