treatment of chronic urinary tract infections

I have had chronic UTIs for about 2 years now and not until recently have I seen a urologist. She took a history, examined a urine specimen, and did a quick pelvic exam.

she explained that some people are born with 'stickier' urethras so in instances of heat and friction (which bacteria dislike), the bacteria will crawl elsewhere (in most women's case in certain situations, the urethra) and will not be flushed out upon urination. She wrote me a script for an antibiotic that could be taken after sexual activity, but after following the list that she gave me for prevention of UTIs, I have not had to take ANY antibiotics, prophylactic or otherwise:

Prevention of UTI:
-vitamin C-500 mg per day
-cranberry extract 1 per day
-6-8 glasses H20 daily
-urinate before and after intercourse or sexual activity
-prune juice 3 ounces per day
-"replens" or "vagisil" ointment as needed

I had purchased and been taking cranberry extract pills, and according to the directions on the bottle, I was supposed to take 2 pills at a time, 3 times a day. for a total of 6 pills. My urologist explained that the irritation I was feeling may have been from the cranberry extract, and that taking too many may  have caused irritation. You should only take 1 cranberry extract pill a day

Also, if you have chronic UTIs, GO TO A UROLOGIST! I have had medical advice from many many internal medicine/family doctors, but in the end not a single one of them knew anything. Looking up information on the internet will get you nowhere, and just going to a family doctor for recurrent UTIs is useless because they don't know the best antibiotic regimen to give you. There may also be other underlying issues for your chronic UTIs, so go to a urologist. They are the ONLY medical professionals who will correctly diagnose you and know what is best.

Check to make sure a cancer is not causing problems. See a doctor, preferably a good doctor, not a "specialist". There is a possibility that you have a cronic infection that comes and goes with your stress levels. Unstressed and rested, your body adapts and overcomes, stressed and tired your body starts losing the battle.

I have several UTI also, I have found that bad bacteria gets up inside, and sometimes not enough good bacteria is present. I have started taking probiotics a large amount, I get from the vitamin store. I have found that helps a lot. Try this, also they have probiotiacs that are just for UTI. .

I am so happy I found this!  For the past 6 months I have been dealing with recurring UTI's.  The problem is, I am allergic to Cipro and Macrobid so I am always put on Keflex which I feel does not work for me.  Most of the time they have been minor infections or a low colony count, but I am still being constantly put on antibiotics which I do not want to take anymore!!  Also, most days I have a burning sensation in my bladder/urinary tract area. Back in June, I got a cystoscopy done because I also have microscopic blood present in my urine every culture I get done.  During my cystoscopy, my doctor did diagnose me with spasms in my bladder and urethral syndrome which mimics UTI's so the weeks when I have a negative culture but feel pain, that is probably the cause.  But he found no explanation for the microscopic blood or UTI's.  I literally am calling my urologist's office every other week to once a month!  I was given a supressent dose of Keflex back in the summer but that was not working so my urologist told me to come off of it.  I have never been so frustrated in my life.  It seems like when I feel okay that is when I have infections and when I am in pain my cultures come back negative.    I just do not know what to do anymore.  This is controlling my life and my anxiety has been horrible because I constantly worry about having an infection.  I am also more paranoid because my friend ignored a UTI and it spread to her kidney and eventually her blood and she was put in a coma for almost 2 weeks to clear the sepsis out of her system!  Seeing her in the hospital bed was the worst thing, and dealing with this for 6 months has scared me even more because I do not want it to happen to me!!  I take cranberry pills every day-3 a day.  I recently heard about a probiotic sold in a vitamin store called Fem Dophilus.  It is for overall women's health for urogenital infections so it is something I want to try.  I follow the basic hygiene practices with washing and wiping.  I am not even thinking about sex because of how paranoid I am with these infections.  My life has just been so controlled by this issue and I do not want to deal with it anymore!

I wish there was a solution to curing these and them never returning!!

 

I asked my doctor about my frequent occurring UTIs since after I had my daughter. He said that the stretching of the uterus during pregnancy can cause your bladder not to sit right anymore and the best course would be to have surgery when I'm done having kids to put it back. Just an FYI for those who are in my same predicament as me.

Have you tried D-Mannose. It really works. Like velcro - the bacteria stick to it as it passes through your bladder. Don't stop taking it too soon though. Continue with it 3 times a day for at least 6 months. You buy it either online or in a health shop. Be sure to get the natural one, not the synthetic one.

You just described my situation perfectly, this was written in 2009...so I'm wondering did you ever find out how to prevent them??

Interesting about the D-mannose. The situation I have is with my Mother who is 90. Osteoporosis caused 5 of her vertebra to collapse in her back so she deals with cronic pain. The meds constipate her, AND cause swelling in her legs, for which diruetics are prescribed which causes more frequent urination and once she is constipated she can no longer empty her bladder fully, causing her to urinate frequently but still not feel comfortable. With her bladder not emptying fully the bacteria can build up and cause an infection....a perfect storm

Can you please provide the name of natural pills. My Mom is suffering from chronic UTIs at a nursing home. They don't want to treat it anymore because she has been taking continous antibiotics. Please help me

I've had them for 3 years, on and off, I've tried many antibiotics and I've seen 3 different urologists. Nothing worked. When my boyfriend left me, they disappeared after a while. When I met someone else, a few years after, they came back. Then I heard about UVA URSI from "La clef des champs", you take 30 drops in your beverage 3 times a day. As soon as you get symptoms, you take it right away for 7 days and normally, within the second day, you feel better. But don't waste any time! I have an infection right now and I waited too long before taking UVA URSI, so now I am on Cipro, but I only have one tablet left to take and nothing has changed. I'm scared it will come back like before... I'm drinking a lot of water, cranberry juice and I only eat alcaline aliments like avocado, potato, zucchini, mushroom, green pepper, banana. I try not to eat any meat, dairy products or drink any alcohol or coffee, because they are very acid. I keep my feet warm all the time and I drink cranberry tea. It ruins your life, seriously. You want to just get out of your body for a least an hour... And it's not great for relationships... However, I'm glad to see that I am not alone and I wish you all good luck. You should all have UVA URSI, it really helps!

Hi everyone! I've had them for 3 years, on and off, I've tried many antibiotics and I've seen 3 different urologists. Nothing worked. When my boyfriend left me, they disappeared after a while. When I met someone else, a few years after, they came back. Then I heard about UVA URSI from "La clef des champs", you take 30 drops in your beverage 3 times a day. As soon as you get symptoms, you take it right away for 7 days and normally, within the second day, you feel better. But don't waste any time! I have an infection right now and I waited too long before taking UVA URSI, so now I am on Cipro, but I only have one tablet left to take and nothing has changed. I'm scared it will come back like before... I'm drinking a lot of water, cranberry juice and I only eat alcaline aliments like avocado, potato, zucchini, mushroom, green pepper, banana. I try not to eat any meat, dairy products or drink any alcohol or coffee, because they are very acid. I keep my feet warm all the time and I drink cranberry tea. It ruins your life, seriously. You want to just get out of your body for a least an hour... And it's not great for relationships... However, I'm glad to see that I am not alone and I wish you all good luck. You should all have UVA URSI, it really helps!

Hi, everyone.

I know EXACTLY how you all feel. For 3 years now I've been getting UTI's literally every time I have intercourse. Basically every time I have intercourse, within the next day or so I'm back to see the doctor/nurse with the same problem. Time after time, it gets more and more frustrating, embarrassing, worrying and I'm completely sick and tired of it all. It gets to a point where I just don't want to have intercourse anymore due to the fact that I always suffer. For a woman of my age I don't want this to come between my intimate life anymore. Nobody deserves this! I take all precautionary measures: urinating before and after intercourse, washing before and after, drinking TONS of water, not holding in my wee, not taking baths, not wearing tight clothes, not drinking alcohol, taking cranberry supplements, vitamin supplements etc etc, the list is endless. It's got to a point where all I ever think about is getting a UTI and it's literally taking over my life. I find sometimes I'm completely fine with no symptoms, then I wake up the next day and BAM, in full-blown pain where I have to put off going to uni/work and just lay in bed crunched up in a ball. It's ridiculous. Every time I go to the doctor/nurse I ask if they can put me on a long course of antibiotics to completely get the rid of the infection, as I do think it could just be the same one that keeps coming back - it's never felt right for years now. I ask them if they can refer me to the uroligist, I just get told "no", I ask them if I can have an antibiotic that I can take after each time I have intercourse, "no". They just give me 3 days worth of trimethroprim which I'm now mostly resistant to, which then requires me to go back again and get given another antibiotic such as nitrofurantoin. The NHS are truly useless sometimes!! But there is no way I can afford to go private. I don't know if anyone has any tips they can give me to help end this constant suffering? I don't want to never have intercourse with my boyfriend because 1) it's not normal for a woman of my age and 2) why should I?! Everyone else does! But honestly, I know how all of you feel. It's really not a nice thing to have to suffer with. I feel your pain! (Literally, I have one right now...)

Please can you reply to me, about bladder infection, I am fifty four and have constance bladder infectons after sex, I have tried everthing , I am so fedup! need HELP!!! Kind Regards Mary.

Hello, it's been a few years since you posted this however I am in desperate need of some help. If you could take the time to please read this I would be eternally grateful. The symptoms you described ate exactly like mine. I also get uti's every week. I've been taking antibiotics for the past 3 months.. I've used over 150 antibiotics I keep getting uti's. if you could please help me out. Have you found any relief? Did the urologist say anything? Please reply! Thank you so much!!

Is your mother also constipated a lot? Being consitpated can prevent the bladder from emptying, the retained urine can act as a breeding pool for bacteria, which are always present to a certain extent. Most nursing homes will only consider constipation a problem if the patient hasn't had a bowel movement for three days. check with the nursing staff, they by law need to keep track of the movements. If this is the situation work with the nursing home and Dr. to get your mother on a daily bm program. Has the nursing home staff identified the bacteria causing the infection, or are they just throwing convienent meds at it and then waiting to see if symptoms return? There are certain kinds of bacteria that are very hard to clear completely from the body, the symptoms clear up as long as the antibiotics are given, but return once the course of medication is run. One such beastie is Psudomonias A. A check list for your mother should include making sure she stays fully hydrated, making sure she is cleaned after BMs and bathed regularly, making sure her bladder is not partially blocked and can empty fully,(an appointment with a urologist is usually recommended to make sure there is no physical reason such as a tumor or kidney stones causing the problem) a suppliment of potassium iodine if it won't interfere with other diuretics or blood pressure medications ( some diuretics are potsassium utilizing and clear potassium from the body, some cause the potassium to be retained in the body), can act as a purifier for the bladder as well as the cranberry juice/ pills which act to acidify the bladder and inhibit bacteria growth. Do not accept the oh she just doesn't wipe correctly c**p. Blaming the patient is the first act of an incompentent or lazy care giver. Hope this helps.