Question: In older adults with recurrent urinary tract infections (RUTIs), how effective is fluid intake, specifically cranberry juice, compared to antibiotics, for reducing frequency and duration of RUTIs?

Answer:

One high quality Cochrane systematic review included a small number of studies which were considered to be of partial relevance to this evidence summary, but none which fully matched the specified PICO. The limited available evidence suggests that cranberry juice or cranberry capsules have no significant treatment effect (compared to placebo) in reducing incidence of recurrent UTI in elderly in-patient populations. Limited evidence also suggests that there is no significant difference between cranberry tablets and trimethoprim or trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole when used to reduce recurrent UTI in adult females.

No systematic reviews or primary studies were identified, which assessed the effectiveness of cranberry juice compared to antibiotics in reducing recurrent UTI in older adults. Therefore further studies are needed to specifically address the comparative preventative effect of fluid intake in the form of cranberry juice in this population.