How to Tell If You Have a Urinary Tract Infection
Urinary tract infections are not uncommon. One in five women will develop a urinary tract infection in their lifetime. The prevalence of interstitial cystitis is less, at 1 in 321 people in the world. In both conditions, women make up about 90 percent of all suffers. In the case of urinary tract infections, 34 percent of all adults greater than 20 years of age reported having a UTI during the 6 year period between 1988 and 1994.
How do I tell if I have a UTI?
The symptoms of urinary tract infections are usually unmistakable. The following symptoms are the top symptoms of a urinary tract infection:
If you have a bladder infection, there are a few things you can do to feel better right away. First, you need to drink plenty of fluids, mainly water but if you have cranberry or blueberry juice (100 percent), you need to drink several glasses of these fluids in order to flush out the bladder and get rid of the bacteria from the bladder. We will talk later about why cranberry and blueberry juices are so good for bladder infections.
If you have a chance to go to the store, consider buying pyridium, also called AZO or Uristat, which numbs the inside of the bladder and makes the pain of the bladder and the pain on urination go nearly completely away. This may also be the time to buy cranberry tablets or capsules at the store and take them three times a day to get rid of the bladder infection. In addition, if they don't have cranberry tablets, try looking for 100 percent cranberry or blueberry juice at the store and bring it home, drinking several glasses during the dy.
You know you need to see the doctor if you develop flank pain (where the kidneys are in the mid-back on either side of the back, a high fever, frank bleeding in the urine or if the symptoms don't go away with any home treatment you have tried. If you are diabetic or otherwise immunocompromized, such as those having cancer or AIDS, you need to see your doctor sooner rather than later to get some kind of medical treatment for bladder infection symptoms. If it turns out you have interstitial cystitis, read on about this condition and what you can do to ease the symptoms of this annoying condition.
Doctors' treatments for urinary tract infections include having you continue the pyridium so that your symptoms are controlled. They will recommend that you continue drinking plenty of fluids and will prescribe any one of the following antibiotics:
You will receive about a three-ten day course of antibiotics and you should feel better within a few days. Continue taking the antibiotic until the course is finished, however, so the infection is definitely cleared out. Your doctor may recommend a follow up urinalysis or urine culture to make sure the infection has cleared. Continue to drink plenty of fluids to prevent further infections from occurring.
Important points to remember:
1. Common bladder infection symptoms include frequency of urination, burning on urination and urgency of urination, along with bladder pain or back pain.
2. If you have the above symptoms, begin to drink a lot of fluids and urinate frequently to try and clear the urine of the bacteria causing it.
3. If you get to a store, try buying pyridium for the pain and urgency of urination and get some cranberry tablets or capsules. Otherwise, you can buy blueberry or cranberry juice which may clear the infection spontaneously.
4. You need to see a doctor if you persistent symptoms or blood in the urine or a high fever
5. Doctors prescribe several different types of antibiotics for bladder infections.
How do I tell if I have a UTI?
The symptoms of urinary tract infections are usually unmistakable. The following symptoms are the top symptoms of a urinary tract infection:
- Frequency of urination
- Urgency of urination
- Cloudy or bloody urine
- Back ache
- Bladder pain (pelvic pain)
- Low grade fever
- Burning pain on urination
If you have a bladder infection, there are a few things you can do to feel better right away. First, you need to drink plenty of fluids, mainly water but if you have cranberry or blueberry juice (100 percent), you need to drink several glasses of these fluids in order to flush out the bladder and get rid of the bacteria from the bladder. We will talk later about why cranberry and blueberry juices are so good for bladder infections.
If you have a chance to go to the store, consider buying pyridium, also called AZO or Uristat, which numbs the inside of the bladder and makes the pain of the bladder and the pain on urination go nearly completely away. This may also be the time to buy cranberry tablets or capsules at the store and take them three times a day to get rid of the bladder infection. In addition, if they don't have cranberry tablets, try looking for 100 percent cranberry or blueberry juice at the store and bring it home, drinking several glasses during the dy.
You know you need to see the doctor if you develop flank pain (where the kidneys are in the mid-back on either side of the back, a high fever, frank bleeding in the urine or if the symptoms don't go away with any home treatment you have tried. If you are diabetic or otherwise immunocompromized, such as those having cancer or AIDS, you need to see your doctor sooner rather than later to get some kind of medical treatment for bladder infection symptoms. If it turns out you have interstitial cystitis, read on about this condition and what you can do to ease the symptoms of this annoying condition.
Doctors' treatments for urinary tract infections include having you continue the pyridium so that your symptoms are controlled. They will recommend that you continue drinking plenty of fluids and will prescribe any one of the following antibiotics:
- Macrodantin (nitrofurantoin)—a common treatment for the prevention of UTIs as well
- Bactrim (trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole)—a sulfa antibiotic that is commonly used to treat urinary tract infections and to prevent them as well
- Amoxicillin—a penicillin-based antibiotic that treats milder bladder infections
- Quinolone antibiotics—this includes Cipro (ciprofloxacin) and Levaquin, which are stronger antibiotics used for severe bladder infections or when people have penicillin and sulfa allergies.
You will receive about a three-ten day course of antibiotics and you should feel better within a few days. Continue taking the antibiotic until the course is finished, however, so the infection is definitely cleared out. Your doctor may recommend a follow up urinalysis or urine culture to make sure the infection has cleared. Continue to drink plenty of fluids to prevent further infections from occurring.
Important points to remember:
1. Common bladder infection symptoms include frequency of urination, burning on urination and urgency of urination, along with bladder pain or back pain.
2. If you have the above symptoms, begin to drink a lot of fluids and urinate frequently to try and clear the urine of the bacteria causing it.
3. If you get to a store, try buying pyridium for the pain and urgency of urination and get some cranberry tablets or capsules. Otherwise, you can buy blueberry or cranberry juice which may clear the infection spontaneously.
4. You need to see a doctor if you persistent symptoms or blood in the urine or a high fever
5. Doctors prescribe several different types of antibiotics for bladder infections.
Source...