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Squamous epithelial cells in a urine specimen are widely thought to be associated with bacterial contamination. A prospective study from California and Arizona refutes this perception. The authors obtained a midstream clean-catch (MSCC) urine sample, followed by a urethral catheter sample, from 105 consecutive women with urinary urgency, hesitancy, or frequency; dysuria; nocturia; subjective gross pyuria; suprapubic pain; or flank pain.
Of the 105 MSCC samples, 101 contained epithelial cells; 60 of these samples were graded "1+," indicating 1 to 9 cells per low-power field. Twenty-two MSCC cultures (21%) were contaminated, including 12 from samples with 1+ epithelial cells (20%). Of the 105 catheter specimens, 99 contained epithelial cells (…