Common causes of falsely low bacterial counts in urine specimens
| Colonisation without infection |
| Dilutional through excessive rehydration |
| Acidification or alkalinisation of urine |
| Urinary frequency |
| Concurrent use of a systemic antimicrobial agent and/or other growth inhibitor |
| Use of a topical cleansing agent with antimicrobial activity during specimen collection |
| Haematogenous infection of the urinary tract |
| Obstruction of the renal tract distal to the site of infection |
| Infection with a fastidious or slow growing organism |