Treatment for All Urinary Tract Infections of woman
An infection in any part of the urinary tract that is; the kidneys, bladder, or urethra is called urinary tract infection or UTI. Urinary tract infections or UTI are very common among women. Repeated attacks of urinary tract infection can cause fever, pain, burning, and urgency of urine, thus affecting household duties as well as absence from work or the women thus crippling their balance of life,.Apart from this, recurrent urinary tract infection or UTI is a long-term danger to health and may lead to kidney failure if not taken care of properly.
With a better understanding of UTI by modern science and the discovery of newer antibiotics, one can get control over UTI and their consequences and have a healthy personal and social life.
Expert gynecologist Dr. Dimple Doshi has helped hundreds of women by preventing the nuisance of recurrent UTI and helped them lead a happy productive life.
Due to the anatomy of their body; where the urethra, vagina, and anus are placed close by; the infection can easily ascend from the urethra to reach and infect the bladder in women. Thus the majority of the urinary tract infections occur in the bladder and urethra but more serious infections involve the kidney.
Incidence of urinary tract infections or UTI :
About 20% in those above 65 yrs and
About 11 % of the overall population.
Between 50-60% of adult women will have at least one UTI in their life.
Age: The largest group of patients with UTI is the reproductive age group of 18-30 yrs associated with sexual activity.
However post-menopausal women are also at high risk due to low levels of estrogen or female hormone.
Dr. Dimple Doshi at Vardaan Hospital; believes prevention is better than cure, and thus apart from the precise treatment guidelines; preventive measures are an essential part of our consultations with the patients who have either had it or want to know more about it.
- Burning sensation or pain while passing urine
- Red, turbid or foul smelling urine
- Frequent urge to urinate but little comes out
- Burning sensation or pain while passing urine
- Red, turbid or foul smelling urine
- Frequent urge to urinate but little comes out
- Pain in flanks or lower abdomen
- Fever; chills
- Nausea or vomiting with urinary complaints
Types of UTI
Based on the location :
- Lower urinary tract infections: It is the commonest type of urinry infectin een in women. It affects the urethra and bladder (also called cystitis )
- Upper urinary tract infections: It involves kidneys, and is more serious.
Based on the prognosis :
1. Uncomplicated UTI:these are the urinry tract infctions win patients who have a normal genitourinary tract, no history of instrumentation and symptoms confined to the lower urinary tract. Most commonly seen in young and sexually active women.2. . Complicated UTI: Thee are the urinary tract infections with structural or functional abnormalities, presence of an underlying disease which increases the risk of treatment failure and further sepsis.Pregnancy
URINARY TRACT INFECTION DIAGNOSIS
Urinary tract infection can be diagnosed easily by the symptoms , and can be confirmed by doing a simple test called urine routine and microscopic examination. Additionally urine culture may also be done.
It is always better to do urine culture test instead of starting any random antibiotic treatment a culture test allows your doctor to pick up the perfect antibiotic for you to prevent the recurrence.
URINARY TRACT INFECTION OR UTI TREATMENT
Simple uncomplicated urinary tract infections are treated by oral antibiotics. IV antibiotics and hospitalization may be required for severe and complicated urinary tract infections. You may be advised to drink plenty of water.1.Drink plenty of water, and relieve yourself often.
2.Wipe from front to back. Anus harbours too many harmful bactria. If you wipe from back to front, especially after a bowel movement anal bacteria find it easy to lodge and thrive inside the urethra and spread through it.And if done from front to back this is minimized.
3.Avoid holding your urine.Urinate as soon as possible and whenever the need arises.
4.Wash up before sex and urinate after it. Use soap and water before sex. This keeps bacteria away from the urethra. And urinating afterward pushes any bacteria that entered the urinary tract back out.
5. Skip douches, deodorant sprays, scented powders, and other potentially irritating feminine products.
6.Rethink your birth control. A spermicide, or spermicide-lubricated condom can make you more likely to get a UTI because they all can contribute to bacterial growth. If you often get UTIs and use one of these birth control methods, switch to a water-based lubricant for vaginal dryness, and consider trying another birth control method to see if it helps.
7.Antibiotic like nitrofurantoin if used regularly for 3 months can prevent attacks of recurrence.
- Wear cotton underwear
- Take showers instead of bath
- Avoid wearing tight clothes that can trap bacteria near urethra
- Drinking unsweetened cranberry juice or cranberry tablets
- Use estrogen cream for recurrent postmenopausal urinary tract UTI
WHY ARE URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS MORE COMMON IN WOMEN?
Women are more prone to develop urinary tract infections due to their anatomy where the urethra, vagina and anus are in close proximity and because they have a shorter urethra so the bacteria do not have to travel very far to reach and infect the woman s bladder.
WHAT IS THE RELATION BETWEEN SEX AND URINARY TRACT INFECTION OR UTI ?
Women are more prone to getting UTIs after having sex because the opening of the urethra is right in front of the vagina.Urinary tract infections also tend to occur in women when they begin having sex for the first time or have it more often. Use of spermicides , or lubricants can also lead to frequent UTI.
A UTI isn’t a sexually transmitted infection (STI), and it isn’t considered a contagious infection..But you can pass the bacteria that causes a UTI to your partners.For example, E. coli bacteria may travel from your anus to the vaginal opening or onto a penis. During vaginal sex, a penis can move the bacteria into the vaginal opening, and the urethra being in the close proximity, there is an increased risk of developing urinary tract infection or UTI. Sometimes sexually transmitted infections like Chlamydia , gonorrhea or trichomoniasis may cause burning in urine or UTI. And this infection is passed sexually between the partners.
WHAT IS HONEYMOON CYSTITIS?
“Honeymoon cystitis” is a very real medical condition that does not just affect women on their honeymoons. It occurs whenever vaginal intercourse leads to urinary tract infections (UTI). ..But as it is more common in the initial days after the marriage, its called honeymoon cystitis. . The ideal way to avoid sexually related UTIs is to pass urine right before and after intercourse.
WHAT IS RECURRENT URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS OR UTI
If you have three or more UTIs in a year, you are said to be suffering from recurrent urinary tract infections or UTI. The risk factors for recurrent urinary tract infections UTI are:
- Diabetes
- Menopausal status
- Frequency of sexual intercourse
- Young age at first UTI
- A new sexual partner OR multiple sexual partners.
- Using birth control methods like spermicides
HOW SERIOUS IS THE UTI IN ELDERLY FEMALES?
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) in elderly people can cause serious health problems. … Improper or inadequate treatment , can lead to acute or chronic kidney infections, which could permanently damage these vital organs and even lead to kidney failure.
So in case of any urinary symptoms, you must visit your health care provider and and take all the precautionary measures. In some severe cases hospitalization may be necessary for administration of IV antibiotics.
WHY UTI DEVELOPS IN THE ELDERLY AND MENOPASUAL FEMALES?
As during menopause, a woman’s estrogen levels decrease, her risk of urinary tract infections increases due to the loss of protective vaginal flora thus making it more vulnerable to bacterial infections. Additionally, vaginal thinning and dryness after menopause is associated with recurrent urinary tract infections.