Chronic bladder infection using a Gentamicin bladder wash

Thats interesting about the soap pines. Will look for some. I too went thru 3 cdiff infections about two or three years ago and nothing since. And now this bladder infection. I wish there was no such thing as getting old.

@sakota- When I was younger I needed to have my urethra stretched because of your exact symptoms. They became cyclic. Has you dr. suggested this at all? All of these antibiotics can make you very very tired. Have you spoken to your pulmonologist about your breathing problems? Perhaps you need to see her again?

@sakota, I have been having incontinence problems for several years now. I wear a pad always and the muscles are getting weaker all the time. I have frequent UTI's, mostly caused by incontinence. I am also immunocompromised because of my organ transplant. Your chemo treatments would also leave you immunocompromised, I believe. I was on a daily low-dose antibiotic for many years, but it stopped working. It took me years to get back off of it. The best thing I can do is drink plenty of fluids. I drink 80 ounces daily. That is about 2 1/2 liters. Cranberry juice has been suggested to me as a home remedy, but I cannot tolerate it. I have also had probiotics suggested as a home remedy, but that is counter to my instructions for organ transplant care. I went to a doctor of internal medicine, a kidney specialist and an infectious disease specialist. I usually wait to fill an antibiotic prescription until I know that it will work for the current bug I have. You will have to work with your physicians to find the best plan of care for you. That means that you need to stay on top of your intake, output and symptoms. You are your best physician and the one to decide if you need more than what you can do at home. I encourage you to see your doctor as soon as you notice: urgency (you cannot hold it until you get to the bathroom) feeling full but unable to pass urine, tiredness, or pain in the urinary tract (whether passing urine or not). Blessings.

I am 83 and have been getting UTIs all my life and have had every test imaginable and have been to several Infectious Disease Doctors and have been hospitalized for IV Antibiotics. Nothing works and no one has answers. My urine cultures always show bacteria growing and I am put on an antibiotic.. Unfortunately, a few weeks later I have a new UTI. My past 2 cultures showed Morganella Morganii bacteria and that bacteria is resistant to all oral antibiotics. My Uro/Gynecologist put me on 7 days Cefpodoxime and i am feeling better, but know I’ll get another UTI in a few weeks. Any suggestions?

I was using the neomycin/polymoxin bladder wash. I was having joint and muscle pain using the gentamycin wash

I have used both Gentamicin, which only targets gamma positive bacteria! Have been on neomycin/polymoxin bladder irrigation. 400 ml to 1 liter of saline solution, which works best for me! The only problem is it had to be refrigerated!

My infectious disease MD wanted me to try bladder washes using a medication called Amikacin after a very complicated UTI that wouldn't go away after 4 different antibiotics the same bacteria just got worse. I tried using many natural products one eased the symptoms for a while but this one hasn't gone away and just keeps becoming resistant. Having ended up in the hospital with a Mid lines that got infected with home nursing dressing change debacle, after 4 months of misery of oral antibiotics not working, I had to go to ER and be admitted to hospital to continue with IV medication. Many tests were done, due to a superficial clot and skin infection from parts missing on new dressing home nurse tried to make due, they had to add an additional antibiotic IV. The second Midline failed. This meant I had to finish IV meds. with a regular IV. I have been having UTI's for 10 years off & on. I saw 5 different urologists over the 10 yrs. but this last bacterium just was beating up the antibiotics, going from tests saying susceptible to resistant. Finally home I just didn't want any more medications. But after about 2 weeks home and stressed out, losing about 10 lbs. I needed a rest at home. I began getting hints that I may be getting another UTI recently. So I started a D mannose but it is not doing much good. Now they want to try Gentamicin washes every day for 30 days as my MD knew I was not wanting Amikacin. So I looked up UTI antibiotic washes and found a video and also written report that these are 2 antibiotics that have been studied that do not get absorbed by the bladder nor the bowels or intestines. The study showed an impressive 75% good results with patients being on Gentamicin for 6 months. The study was done in Philadelphia PA and another one outside the USA I think. So there is another one you would be able to use. I am now giving serious thought to try the bladder washes hoping it works I refused calls today from the Homecare as my MD ordered it without telling me. I called asking for clarification and wanted to ask why she didn't inform me first. She is a good MD but communication from their office is sometimes not good. But given the patient load being so high after COVID turned the world upside down, patients do have to become their own advocate or a family member needs to if the patient isn't able; a sad sign of the time. This info may come too late as I see your post was in Jan. It is now the end of March '23. I am hoping it may help someone knowing how difficult it can be to find answers or even doctors that know about options. I also found a women's group called " liveutifree" who share stories and insight and personal stories. We have to help each other. I do trust Mayo clinic & have been a patient of theirs in the past, now I live farther away from Mayo Clinic so it is not easy to go that far to be a patient. Being a senior on a budget is the difficult part of getting older with Medicare covering less these days I wish all good health and hope this is of help to anyone who it may benefit

That sentence refers to oral antibiotics and you are not ignorant. They write these in doctor language so we cannot decipher what they are saying. Oral antibiotics have a lot of issues that come with using them. It disrupts you whole flora, so your probiotics do not work without yogurt or fermented foods.
I am still trying to find side effects of the Gentamycin wash. My husband has prostate problems along with Parkinson's disease and has had recurrent UTI's since the nurse in ER inflated the balloon in his prostate rather that the bladder. I have been straight cathing him for a couple of years now without problem until that incident occurred.
We are trying this now with reservations. I don't know what the gentamycin will do to his bladder eventually.
I also am sick of the medical profession. They do not or will not answer your questions. Even the good ones.

Welcome, @patsaco1. You're right that journal articles are not written in plain language. I appreciate your untangling that sentence in plain language for @taxpayinghorse.

You mention you are looking for information about Gentamicin (injection route) including side effects. Here is information from Mayo Clinic, which you've likely already seen: https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/gentamicin-injection-route/description/drg-20074471

As a caregiver for someone living with Parkinson's, you might also be interested in following this support group:
- Parkinson's Disease Support Group https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/parkinsons-disease/

I'm also tagging @seabiscuit @cavman9 who can share their experiences.

@patsaco1, I can understand your hesitancy with gentamicin (Garamycin). Is the urologist aware that he has Parkinson's? When is he scheduled for treatment?

It's the gentamycin bladder wash not an injection. I wondered what gentamycin will do to the bladder with consistent usage. I heard it can destroy the bladder. Could you give me more info on that? He is still able to void, so it's not like he can't empty his bladder on a regular basis. I cath him 2-3 times a day to make sure his bladder is emptied. We've decided to do it for a week and then if I see his urine changing and getting infected again, we will start up the washes for 5 days. I know this is generally done for a paraplegic or someone who cannot void. We are in foreign territory.