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Under the direction of principal investigator Catherine Forster, MD, MS, FAAP, this translational research lab is focused on studying urinary tract infections (UTIs) in people with complex genitourinary tracts. This mostly includes those with neurogenic bladders, either due to spina bifida or spinal cord injury.
People with neurogenic bladder often have bacteria in their urine, which can be normal or a sign of a UTI. It is currently difficult to tell when these bacteria are causing a UTI and when they are not. The reason it is important to determine whether or not bacteria in the urine are causing a UTI is to limit unnecessary antibiotics. People with neurogenic bladder get many antibiotics, which can lead to infections with antibiotic-resistant bacteria that are difficult to treat. Our lab is focused on discovering ways to more accurately diagnose UTIs in people with neurogenic bladder.
The urobiome refers to bacteria that exist within the bladder. Everyone has bacteria in their urine, although the amount and type of bacteria may be difficult to detect using standard urine cultures. People with neurogenic bladders have urobiomes that are different than the urobiomes in people with normally-functioning bladders.
We are interested in identifying:
The next step to understanding whether changes in the urobiome are important is to identify how the bladder tissue responds to changes in the urobiome. We use a variety of methods to characterize the interaction between the host bladder and the component of the urobiome.
Principal Investigator forstercs@upmc.edu
Nina Kowalewski Laboratory Technician kowalewskinn@upmc.edu
The Forster Lab UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh John G. Rangos Sr. Research Center, Floor 7, Bay 5 4401 Penn Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15224 412-692-8337
The Association Between Urine Neutrophil Gelatinase-associated Lipocalin and UTI in People with Neurogenic Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction Forster CS, Lamanna OK, Rounds A, Sprague BM, Ljungberg I, and Groah SL Spinal Cord, epub 2020 Sep 22
Novel Catheter Design Enables Transurethral Catheterization of Male Mice Lamanna O, Hsieh MH, and Forster CS American Journal of Physiology, Renal Physiology 2020 July 1
A Cross-sectional Analysis of the Urine Microbiome of Children with Neuropathic Bladders Forster CS, Panchapakesan K, Stroud C, Banerjee P, Gordish-Dressman H, and Hsieh MH Journal of Pediatric Urology 2020 Oct 1
A Single Intravesical Instillation of Probiotics is Safe in Children and Adults with Neuropathic Bladder: A Phase Ia Clinical Trial Forster CS, Hsieh MH, Pérez-Losada M, Caldovic L, Pohl H, Ljungberg I, Sprague B, Stroud C, Groah S Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, epub 2019 May 17
Predictive Ability of NGAL in Identifying Urinary Tract Infection in Children with Neurogenic Bladders Forster CS, Jackson E, Ma Q, Bennett M, Shah S, and Goldstein S Pediatric Nephrology 2018 Aug
Association Between Urodynamic Parameters and Urine NGAL Concentrations in Children with Neurogenic Bladders Forster CS, Goldstein S, Pohl H, and Jackson E. Journal of Pediatric Urology, epub 2019 Jan 23
The Forster Lab is looking for talented post-doctoral fellows and graduate students interested in joining our research initiatives. Please contact Dr. Forster via email if you are interested.
Children's Hospital's main campus is located in the Lawrenceville neighborhood. Our main hospital address is:
UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh One Children’s Hospital Way 4401 Penn Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15224
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