[The DEGAM guidelines "Dysuria" by the German Society of General Practice and Family Medicine (DEGAM)--possible consequences of the implementation in general practice].

INTRODUCTION

In Germany, there are hardly any reliable data on patient care in the primary care setting which warrant the development and implementation of clinical guidelines. In this paper, data generated by a prospective observational study of patients with urinary tract symptoms are compared to the recommendations of an evidence-based clinical guideline.

PATIENTS AND METHODOLOGY: Over a period of 6 months all patients consulting one of 6 General Practitioners in southern Germany with symptoms of dysuria have been documented on a standardised patient record. Data were compared to the recommendations of the guideline "Dysuria" by the German Society of General Practice and Family Medicine (DEGAM) to assess the relevance and feasibility of the guideline. In a scenario, compliance with the guideline is extrapolated to the realm of primary care.

RESULTS

Basic demographic and epidemiological data agree with basic assumptions of the guideline. As far as diagnostic and therapeutic strategies are concerned there are significant discrepancies between the recommendations and the realm of primary care. Microbiologic cultures are ordered far less then recommended, second line drugs are prescribed far more often then recommended, macroscopic urinoscopy is performed widely but not covered by the guideline at all. If GPs complied completely with the guideline, many more diagnostic procedures would be performed and a different palette of antimicrobial drugs would be prescribed.

CONCLUSION AND OUTLOOK: The "Dysuria-Guideline" of DEGAM was developed for a prevalent and relevant topic in primary care in Germany. There are significant discrepancies between the recommendations and the realm of primary care. Post-hoc-analysis is an informative and feasible tool to identify potential obstacles against implementation of guidelines.