What does it mean when one has bacteria present in a urine culture?

Depends upon type.: In most instances, urine should not contain any bacteria, and the presence of bacteria might indicate an infection. Sometimes when a urine culture is collected, a few bacteria from the skin or end of the urethra may "contaminate" the urine. In such cases, bacteria may not indicate a real disease. Need to know type and # of bacteria and whether there are accompanying white blood cells in urine.