Cranberry juice consumption may reduce biofilms on uroepithelial cells: pilot study in spinal cord injured patients

Study design: A pilot study of 15 spinal cord injured patients. Objective: To determine whether alteration of fluid intake and use of cranberry juice altered the bacterial biofilm load in the bladder. Setting: London, Ontario, Canada. Methods: Urine samples were collected on day 0 (start of study), on day 7 following each patient taking one glass of water three times daily in addition to normal diet, and on day 15 following each patient taking one glass of cranberry juice thrice daily. One urine sample was sent for culture and a second processed to harvest, examine by light microscopy and Gram stain non-squamous uroepithelial cells to generate bacterial adhesion per 50 cells data. Results: The results showed that cranberry juice intake significantly reduced the biofilm load compared to baseline (P=0.013). This was due to a reduction in adhesion of Gram negative (P=0.054) and Gram positive (P=0.022) bacteria to cells. Water intake did not significantly reduce the bacterial adhesion or biofilm presence. Conclusion: The findings provide evidence in support of further. larger clinical trials into the use of functional foods, particularly cranberry juice, to reduce the risk of UTI in a patient population highly susceptible to morbidity and mortality associated with drug resistant uropathogens. Sponsorship: This study was funded by Ocean Spray Cranberries, Lakeville, MA, USA.