Sister chromatid exchanges in peripheral lymphocytes of urinary tract infection treated with nitrofurantoin.

Nitrofurantoin, a widely used antibacterial agent in the therapy of urinary tract infections of bacterial origin, has been widely discussed in recent years due to its genotoxicity. Sister chromatid exchanges (SCE) were studied in lymphocyte cultures of 15 urinary tract infection patients before and after medication with daily oral doses of 10 mg/kg or 400 mg nitrofurantoin for 10 days. Both stages exhibited similar average numbers of SCE in circulating lymphocytes. The number of SCE was larger in smokers. The results of this study suggest that the short-term exposure to nitrofurantoin does not cause detectable cytogenetic abnormalities.