How To Detect Urinary Tract Infection

Urinary Tract Infections In Women

UTIs are common, particularly with increasing age. Women are more likely to get a UTI than men. Nearly 1 in 3 women will have a UTI needing treatment before the age of 24.

In women, the urethra is short and straight, making it easier for germs to travel into the bladder. For some women, UTIs relate to changes in their hormonal levels. Some are more likely to get an infection during certain times in their menstrual cycle, such as just before a period or during pregnancy.

In older women, the tissues of the urethra and bladder become thinner and drier with age as well as after menopause or a hysterectomy. This can be linked to increased UTIs.

During pregnancy, the drainage system from the kidney to the bladder widens so urine does not drain as quickly. This makes it easier to get a UTI. Sometimes germs can move from the bladder to the kidney causing a kidney infection. UTIs during pregnancy can result in increased blood pressure, so it is very important to have them treated as soon as possible.

Women are more at risk of repeated UTIs if they:

• use spermicide jelly or diaphragm for contraception
• have had a new sexual partner in the last year
• had their first UTI at or before 15 years of age
• have a family history of repeated UTIs, particularly their mother
• suffer from constipation

Key Points About Urinary Tract Infections

• Urinary tract infections are a common health problem that affects millions of people each year. These infections can affect any part of the urinary tract.
• Most UTIs are caused by E. coli bacteria, which normally live in the colon.
• The most common symptoms of UTIs include changes in urination such as frequency, pain, or burning urine looks dark, cloudy, or red and smells bad back or side pain nausea/vomiting and fever.
• Antibiotics are used to treat UTIs. Other treatments may include pain relievers, and drinking plenty of water to help wash bacteria out of the urinary tract.
• Other things that can be done may help reduce the likelihood of developing UTIs.

How To Detect Urinary Tract Infections In Your Dogs

UTIs are the worst! Even humans know that the painful, burning sensation when you go potty isnt normal.

Urinary tract infections are common among both humans and dogs, and it is important to know the signs so that you can best take care of your dog. While for humans, the treatment for a UTI is relatively easy, the same is not true for dogs.

Unfortunately, these infections are very uncomfortable for dogs to deal with and can cause additional health issues and severe complications if they do not receive treatment in a timely manner. In this blog post, we will go over some information about what urinary tract infections are, the symptoms, and steps that can be taken to prevent them.

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Getting Tested For A Uti

Testing for a UTI usually takes place in a doctors office, laboratory, or hospital. Most tests for UTIs involve a urine sample obtained by clean-catch or catheterization. Your doctor can help determine which method is appropriate for you.

• Clean catch urine samples are collected by patients with special precautions to prevent outside germs from getting into the urine sample. Patients are given instructions on obtaining a clean catch sample and avoiding contamination.
• Catheterization involves inserting a thin rubber tube through the urethra into the bladder. When performing this procedure, the urine is collected in a sterile container for testing before removing the catheter.

How Can You Tell The Difference Between A Uti And Bladder Infection

Bladder infections are a type of UTI that involves the lower urinary tract, including the bladder. A bladder infection can spread to other parts of your urinary tract or kidneys if left untreated. The symptoms of bladder infections and UTIs can be similar. See a doctor if you are experiencing symptoms of a UTI, such as painful or frequent urination, pain in your central lower abdomen, or blood in your urine.

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What Is The Urinary Tract

The urinary tract makes and stores urine, one of the body’s liquid waste products. The urinary tract includes the following parts:

• Kidneys: These small organs are located on back of your body, just above the hips. They are the filters of your body removing waste and water from your blood. This waste becomes urine.
• Ureters: The ureters are thin tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to your bladder.
• Bladder: A sac-like container, the bladder stores your urine before it leaves the body.
• Urethra: This tube carries the urine from your bladder to the outside of the body.

What Is The Prognosis For A Person With A Urinary Tract Infection

Urinary tract infections typically respond very well to treatment. A UTI can be uncomfortable before you start treatment, but once your healthcare provider identifies the type of bacteria and prescribes the right antibiotic medication, your symptoms should improve quickly. Its important to keep taking your medication for the entire amount of time your healthcare provider prescribed. If you have frequent UTIs or if your symptoms arent improving, your provider may test to see if its an antibiotic-resistant infection. These are more complicated infections to treat and may require intravenous antibiotics or alternative treatments.

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Can I Prevent A Urinary Tract Infection

You can usually prevent a urinary tract infection with lifestyle changes. These tips can include:

In some post-menopausal women, a healthcare provider may suggest an estrogen-containing vaginal cream. This may reduce the risk of developing a UTI by changing the pH of the vagina. Talk to your healthcare provider if you have recurrent UTIs and have already gone through menopause.

Over-the-counter supplements are also available for UTIs. These are sometimes recommended for people who have frequent UTIs as another way to prevent them. Talk to your healthcare provider before starting any supplements and ask if these could be a good choice for you.

Urinary Tract Infections In Babies And Young Children

Babies and children are at risk of UTIs. These infections always need to be investigated as they may indicate a serious underlying condition, such as urinary reflux. Reflux is caused by a bladder valve problem allowing urine to flow back into the kidneys from the bladder. Reflux can cause the urine to stay inside the body increasing the risk of infection. It may lead to kidney scarring, which in turn leads to high blood pressure and sometimes kidney problems.

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Is It Possible To Treat A Uti At Home Without The Use Of Antibiotics

Most UTIs require treatment with antibiotics. When certain groups of people, including people with a penis, have a UTI, the infection is usually considered to be complicated. Delaying treatment of complicated UTIs can lead to complications, such as a kidney infection or sepsis. If you are experiencing symptoms of a UTI, visit a doctor or healthcare professional and have a urine test performed.

Preventing A Urinary Tract Infection

While there are not many direct actions that can be taken to prevent urinary tract infections, you can reduce the risk by maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle and ensuring adequate water intake. Try to take your pooch out as much as possible so that he or she will not hold their pee which might exacerbate the infection.

Water is key to preventing urinary tract infections. If your dog isnt much of a water drinker, try using treats or some natural flavoring in the water bowl to entice your pooch to drink. The more he drinks, the more water gets flushed out of the body, together with any bad bacteria that might be lurking.

Ensuring that your dog is drinking enough water and staying hydrated, along with maintaining a healthy amount of exercise in their daily life can help act as preventative measures.

It is crucial to make sure that your dog is eating nutritious, hypoallergenic dog food and that they are receiving proper hygienic care to prevent a variety of issues, including urinary tract infections and other health concerns.

Vets may also recommend various supplements, but it is important to note that without professional consultation these can sometimes worsen various other infections depending on the cause of the urinary tract infections.

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Risk Factors For Recurrent Utis Include:

• Frequent sexual intercourse, which increases the likelihood of bacteria entering the urethra and bladder.
• Using spermicide with or without a diaphragm, as this can harm protective bacteria in the urinary tract that defend against infection.
• Urinary retention or incomplete bladder emptying caused by medications narrowing of the urethra prolapse of the bladder, uterus or vagina neurological conditions or sometimes unknown reasons.
• Vaginal atrophy, which is a postmenopausal condition caused by decreased estrogen levels.
• Genetics, especially the inherited genes that regulate the body’s immune response to infections.

It’s common for some people to have bacteria in their urine but not experience any symptoms. In these cases, no treatment is necessary.

Talk with your health care team if you think you have a UTI. You may need an appointment to discuss your symptoms and collect a urine sample.

You should seek medical attention if you develop a fever, chills, disorientation, or back or side pain. These could be signs of a kidney infection, which requires treatment, or a systemic infection of the bloodstream that requires hospitalization.

Cultures And The Laboratory Diagnosis Of Utis

Routine bacterial urine cultures. Urine culture may not be necessary as part of the evaluation of outpatients with uncomplicated UTIs . However, urine cultures are necessary for outpatients who have recurrent UTIs, experience treatment failures, or have complicated UTIs. Urine cultures are also necessary for inpatients who develop UTIs. The bacterial culture remains an important test in the diagnosis of UTI, not only because it helps to document infection, but also because it is necessary for determination of the identity of the infecting microorganism and for antimicrobial susceptibility testing. This is particularly true because of the increased incidence of antimicrobial resistance.

Catheterized patients and many patients with infections of the lower urinary tract have colony counts much lower than 105 cfu/mL if the specimens are obtained via suprapubic aspirate or catheterization . Accordingly, the most appropriate diagnostic criterion for urine culture specimens obtained via suprapubic aspirate or catheterization is a bacterial concentration of 102 cfu/mL .

Interpreting culture results for urine specimens yielding common urinary tract pathogens.

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The Role Of Uti Testing

UTI testing may be performed if a doctor suspects a UTI based on a patients symptoms and a physical examination. Laboratory tests can diagnose or rule out UTIs. UTI testing can also identify the bacteria or other microbes that are causing the infection, which helps doctors decide how to best treat the infection.

Tips To Prevent A Urinary Tract Infection

A urinary tract infection, also called a UTI, is an infection that occurs in the urinary system. This could include the urethra, bladder, ureters and kidneys. Most infections involve the bladder and urethra, known as the lower urinary tract.

The most common symptoms include painful urination, tenderness above the bladder area, urgency and frequency of urination. Cloudy and a strong odor are not signs of infection.

Women are at greater risk for a UTI because the urethra is shorter than in men, so it’s easier for bacteria to travel to the bladder. UTIs also are more common in postmenopausal women because low estrogen levels change vaginal and urethral tissue to increase the risk of infection.

It’s always better to prevent an infection rather than simply treat it. UTIs are no different.

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Still Unsure Try An At Home Uti Test

At home tests are a great way to detect a UTI before going to see your doctor. Some, like AZO Test Strips®, are the same urinary tract infection tests used in many doctors offices. The most reliable, over-the-counter UTI home test available, AZO Test Strips®offer two UTI tests in one including both Leukocyte and Nitrite tests. These tests performed together are more effective for detecting a UTI than testing for nitrite alone.

If you get a positive result, its time to call your doctor with the results. If your result is negative but you are experiencing symptoms, you should still call your doctor. A small number of people may not have detectable nitrites even though an infection is present.

Can I Become Immune To The Antibiotics Used To Treat A Uti

Your body can actually get used to the antibiotics typically used to treat a urinary tract infection . This happens in people who have very frequent infections. With each UTI and use of antibiotics to treat it, the infection adapts and becomes harder to fight. This is called an antibiotic-resistant infection. Because of this, your healthcare provider may suggest alternative treatments if you have frequent UTIs. These could include:

• Waiting: Your provider may suggest that you watch your symptoms and wait. During this time, you may be encouraged to drink plenty of fluids in an effort to flush out your system.
• Intravenous treatment: In some very complicated cases, where the UTI is resistant to antibiotics or the infection has moved to your kidneys, you may need to be treated in the hospital. The medicine will be given to you directly in your vein . Once youre home, you will be prescribed antibiotics for a period of time to fully get rid of the infection.

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Interpretation Of Urinalysis And Urine Culture For Uti Treatment

Brittany N. Bates, PharmD, BCPSClinical Assistant Professor of Pharmacy PracticeOhio Northern UniversityLima, OhioUS Pharm.

ABSTRACT: Urinary tract infection is one of the most commonly diagnosed infections in both outpatient and inpatient populations. In order to make an accurate diagnosis, it is essential for practitioners to understand the value and limitations of urinalysis and urine culture. Use of these tests in conjunction with an assessment of urinary symptoms will yield a diagnosis of either asymptomatic bacteriuria or symptomatic UTI. Pharmacists can play a key role in recommending that antibiotic therapy be withheld when it is not indicated, in addition to providing guidance on appropriate antibiotic selection when treatment is warranted.

Urinalysis is a valuable diagnostic tool for many common disease states. Urinalysis is the most frequently used test for the evaluation of potential urinary tract infection . In addition, it can provide useful information related to screening and diagnosis of other conditions, including malignancy, proteinuria, glycosuria, ketonuria, and renal calculi.1 Accurate interpretation of urinalysis results is a key concept for health care providers in order to diagnose and treat patients appropriately. This article will focus primarily on the interpretation of urinalysis and subsequent urine culture in the diagnosis and treatment of UTIs.

How Long Does It Take To Recover

Both UTIs and yeast infections should clear up after taking medications within days or a few weeks. You must make sure to take prescribed or over-the-counter medication as directed for the entire recommended length of time to prevent the infection from returning.

You may be able to prevent both UTIs and yeast infections by practicing good hygiene and making changes to your wardrobe. Here are some prevention tips:

• Wipe from front to back after a bowel movement.
• Avoid tight-fitting clothing around your genital area, such as pantyhose and restrictive pants.
• Change out of wet swimsuits quickly.
• Do not douche or use vaginal spray or deodorizers near your genitals.
• Avoid scented feminine hygiene products.

Further prevention of UTIs include:

• using the bathroom frequently
• regularly drinking lots of fluid
• urinating before and after sex

Its also possible that drinking cranberry juice can prevent UTIs. The research results are mixed. Make sure to choose a sugar-free version. If the juice is too tart, you can water it down to make the juice more palatable.

You may also be able to reduce your chances of contracting a yeast infection if you:

• avoid hot baths and hot tubs
• change your feminine products often
• control your blood sugar if you have diabetes

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What Are The Symptoms Of A Urinary Tract Infection

These are the most common symptoms of a UTI:

• Frequent urination
• Pain or burning when passing urine
• Fever
• Urine looks dark, cloudy, or reddish in color
• Urine smells bad
• Feeling pain even when not urinating
• Tiredness
• Pain in the back or side, below the ribs
• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Despite an strong urge to urinate, only a small amount of urine is passed
• Women may feel an uncomfortable pressure above the pubic bone

The symptoms of UTI may look like other conditions or medical problems. Always see a health care provider for a diagnosis.

How Is A Urinary Tract Infection Diagnosed In Teens And Adults

If you have symptoms of a UTI, your first visit to a doctor will likely include:

• Questions about your past health.
• A physical exam.
• Urinalysis. This test measures different parts of urine to help detect a UTI.

To confirm the diagnosis of a suspected UTI, your doctor may ask for a sample of your urine. It is tested to see if it has germs that cause bladder infections. But if your doctor thinks you have a UTI, he or she may have you start taking antibiotics right away without waiting for the results of your test.

Tests used less often

Your doctor may order other tests if antibiotics don’t help or if the infection comes back, if there are complications, or, in some cases, if the kidneys are infected.

Your doctor may order other tests to:

• Look for the cause of infections that don’t go away or that keep coming back.
• Check for other kidney problems.
• Diagnose structural problems of the urinary tract that might make you more likely to get UTIs.
• Find out if the infection is caused by unusual bacteria.
• Find out if you have an impaired immune system.

If you get UTIs often, your doctor may write you a standing prescription for antibiotics that you can fill without a doctor’s appointment. Then, when you first have symptoms of a UTI, you can start taking medicine right away. You may want to use a home test for UTIs to make sure you have an infection before you start antibiotics.

You may need more tests before and after treatment if you:

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