Recurrent urinary tract infections (UTI)

I am sorry you are going through this as I can relate to chronic UTIS, so I understand your frustration with Dr's. Here is my experience. I started having UTIS in my early 20's. After a few years of having several bladder infections, I asking Dr's why I was getting so many of them. Here was their responses (1) woman often get them (2) don't wear tight jeans (3) don't use colored toilet paper (yes in the 70's you could buy pastel colored TP.) We moved around a lot back then, so I saw a lot of different Dr's. After awhile a lot of antibiotics didn't work on me, except sulfa drugs and 7 days was not long enough to get rid of the infection so I had to take it for 10 days.

Fast forward to 11 years of having recurrent UTI's I finally found a "GOOD" Dr that (after only seeing him twice for a bladder infection) said "Has anyone ever tested you to see if there is a problem?) FINALLY!!!

He sent me to an urologist and he did all kinds of tests on me. It wasn't till the last test that something wrong was discovered. My ureter going from my bladder into my right kidney went straight through to the kidney. It is supposed to go through the wall of the kidney first before going into the kidney. What this did was allow urine to flow back up into the bladder which was causing my bladder infections. In the early 80's I had a ureter reimplantation done on the right kidney and that stopped the infections!!! After having so my infections for 11 years I was told my right kidney was 1/3 damaged and my left had enlarged to compensate.

I don't know what tests you have had done and I am not saying this is the cause of your infections because there can be several reasons why this is happening. My girlfriends daughter had several infections when she was younger and they discovered the reason for her infections was she had a pouch in her ureter that was collecting urine and then it would sit there stagnant till it got infected. She had surgery to fix this and she stopped having infections. I am just saying that I would be going to another urologist as there has to be something causing this to happen to you.

I wish you all the best and please let us know how your journey goes.

Maureen

@maureenb, @daphne52 and all...I'm 75 years old, had multiple and frequent UTIs all my younger life, and at one time in the '70s, I went to see a urologist. He enlarged the urethra. Ouch! But it did help some., for a while. Last year I had 5 infections. 5 is a lot, so I screamed for help from my great Mayo doctors. Why so many?????

I saw a gynourologist at Mayo. After lots of weird testing, she found, among other things, my urine incontinence was due to a urethra muscle issue and performed a procedure to inject a bonding agent to bulk up the muscle. It was not a fun procedure, I vowed never again, but the alternative is surgery which I will not have. This doctor didn't address the UTIs, to my surprise, but sent me to infectious disease doctors for a consult. They put me on a regime of daily antibiotics for prevention.

Well, I had serious intestinal reactions from the antibiotics, after 5 different types I said no more, please. A doctor in Integrated services, like massage, acupuncture, counseling, the out or normal medical fields department, prescribed a probiotic that solved my intestinal problems completely. I've had IBSD forever, so this is a miracle! I was taking another probiotic, but this one is very different and works!

I also take some supplements, after ckg with my doctors. I get a UTI supplement online from Research Verified with multiple berries, including cranberries, and no UTI since. Amazing to me. Not one in months since taking this supplement. It may interfere with some meds, but at this point, ok. I continue to take it as no UTIs is immense.

Blessings on your journey. It is imperative if you have such recurrent UTIs to see a specialist who knows for what to look. Elizabeth

Going through a revolving door of "here, take this antibiotic" and no real discussion of possible reasons for the UTIS, I have lost faith in doctors. The fear of one day needing an antibiotic for a life threatening illness and none no longer work is frightening. I am in the process of trying to get an appointment with Mayo Clinic. I can only pray and hope. My life is at a standstill and feel no light at the end of the tunnel. Hearing that you finally got your answers, I am so happy for you. I feel for all the young people who may suffer a lifetime of misery having this chronic illness. Thank you for taking the time to advise. Kathy

I have a recurring esbl bladder infection since 2014. Am taking a 14 day ertapenam I v treatment at the moment. Is there anything that can help prevent this from reoccurring. I’ve seen many specialist and other doctored. Getting desperate is my middle name

I would definitely recommend going to a urologist, especially if you are a female. Last summer I had what appeared to be a UTI (blood in urine). I thought it was a UTI and my primary care doctor was leaning in that direction. She did a urinalysis and it didn't really show an infection, but the usual protocol is to try an antibiotic. She did. The blood stopped. It soon came back. She tested again. Same thing: No real infection. This time she referred me to a urologist, but because of COVD backup, I couldn't get an appointment for almost two months, so she ordered an ultrasound. It showed a tumor "suspicious of malignancy."

While I waited to see the urologist I did some research. Bladder cancer is more common in men, especially older men. However, older men are often in touch with a urologist because of prostate problems. so cancer is often diagnosed early. When women have bladder cancer, it is usually not diagnosed right away because everyone -- the patient, the primary care doctor, the gynecologist -- assumes that it is just a UTI. By the time it is diagnosed, it is advanced.

It could indeed be just a UTI, but if it's not, a urologist would be better able to diagnose it.

My tumor was/is indeed cancer, and was a high grade cancer that infiltrated the muscle and spread to adjacent lymph nodes. I'm undergoing chemo and when that is done, I'll have surgery to remove my bladder and give me an external bad to collect urine.

I'm not trying to scare you. I just think a urologist would be able to determine if it's indeed something to worry about, or just recurrent UTIs.

I requested a visit to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota and Florida and they both turn me down. Evidently the Urology Clinic feels Chronic UTIs are not something they consider important enough to see the patient. Reading up on UTIs, it appears small amount of women get this illness, maybe once or twice in their lifetime. You would think it not being common, these "Specialist" would have an overly interest in finding a cure or long term medical solutions to help me. Instead, they say they don't have enough Urologists to accommodate UTIs. Who better than a Urologist to aid UTI? This illness stifles your life leaving you bedridden at times and over using different antibiotics, you become immune to their healing effects. I am there.. I am extremely disappointed and disillusioned with the supposedly fact that if you can't get medical help from your hometown doctors, Mayo Clinic is the best place to go to get the answers and medical help. My 33 year old granddaughter also has UTIs and my heart breaks she will suffer a lifetime and eventually be immune to antibiotics. Mine didn't start until menopause. What do I do now? Thank you that I can vent. Kathy

Kathy, I live in Minnesota, I was seen at Mayo Clinic in Rochester last September. My PCP called the Physicians Referral Line at 1-800-533-1564 and referred me. I was contacted by Mayo within a week, set up an account on Mayo Clinic site, I then filled out the forms on their site. My paper work was reviewed, and they approved my case. It took almost three months before I was seen. Praying You can get an appointment. Kathryn

Kathy, I suggest you see a reputable urogynecologist . I did and my situation is now well under control. Our female anatomy requires the expertise of more than that of a urologist. I speak from experience.
There is no need for you or your granddaughter to suffer.
This is 2022 after all!

All the best!

Check out D-manoose We like the NOW brand from Amazon. It helps my husband.

My husband had a skin break out all over his body with heavy blood in his urine. He never had a UTI or sepsis before this occurred. This started 4 years ago and since then he has been hospitalized with UTI's and sepsis many times. Since we discovered a product called D-Mannose his episodes are less severe and further apart. None of his urologist mentioned this to us until we studied it and wanted to try it. Then they said yes, it is ok to try. Now I am finding that some medical research is showing that it is a treatment showing promise for treatment of Urinary tract cancer. Do your research and ask your doctor. We use the Now brand powder from Amazon.