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Three diagnostic tests, Nitur, Urobact, and Uricult, were evaluated in the detection of bacteriuria in 865 pregnant women. As reference method agar culture was performed. Heavy growth (greater than 10(5) CFU/ml) of urinary tract bacteria was considered a true positive result and demonstrated in 58 (6.7%) of the women, 14 of whom had gram-negative rods. The sensitivity of the nitrite test was extremely low (0.13). The test gave negative results in eight of 17 specimens yielding heavy growth of Escherichia coli or Proteus mirabilis. Although the Urobact test was highly sensitive as regards gram-negative infection, it had an unacceptably low (0.27) predictive value in positive tests. The sensitivity of the Uricult test was low (0.35) in this study. The predictive value (0.50) of a positive test result may be acceptable, since just over half of the false positive results were explainable by moderate growth of urinary tract pathogens (10(4)-10(5) CFU/ml). It is argued that semi-quantitative urine culture may be preferable to the rapid diagnostic methods studied for the screening of bacteriuria in pregnant women.

Atenolol and metoprolol are the two most widely used beta 1-adrenoceptor antagonists in the treatment of essential hypertension. Differences in their physico-chemical properties have been the basis of a number of clinical studies whose primary or secondary objective has been to compare subjective well-being during treatment with these beta-selective blockers. The results are, however, contradictory, mainly due to factors such as open study design, different dose regimens and dissimilar study populations. The aim of the present study was to evaluate and compare subjective well-being during treatment with atenolol (50 mg o.d.) and metoprolol CR (100 mg o.d.) in a randomized double-blind, cross-over study (2 x 6 weeks) in hypertensives not previously treated with either of the drugs studied. Two self-administered questionnaires (MSE-profile and Jern quality of life questionnaire) were filled in both before randomization and before follow up visits at 1, 3 and 6 weeks in each treatment period. Furthermore, subjective symptoms, blood pressure and heart rate were monitored. At the end of the study, patients were requested to state what treatment they preferred. Atenolol and metoprolol CR were found to be equally effective in reducing blood pressure (from 159/98 to 144/87 and 144/88 mm Hg, respectively, n = 74). The MSE-profile and the Jern quality of life questionnaire could not detect any differences between the two treatments as regards general well-being. Other subjective symptoms (e.g. diarrhoea, bradycardia, cold hands and feet) were uncommon and equally distributed among atenolol and metoprolol patients. 31 of the patients preferred metoprolol CR, 23 atenolol, while 20 had no preference.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)