1. < Women's Health

MULTIPLE UTIs

Posted by therebedragons @therebedragons, Jul 1 3:06pm

I have been having multiple uti's since Nov 2023, and have had 13 of them since then. Now I'm experiencing symptoms again. I get anything from a 1 day treatment to 5 days of antibiotics. Every other time, the doc has given me treatment before results are back---every time, it's showed as an infection. This 14th time now, she refuses to give me antibiotics until the results are back. I don't get it. Same symptoms as always. Well, it's a long weekend, so so far, I've been suffering for 6 days with no results in sight.

I'd like to know at what point this will become more than constant UTIs, and turn into a bladder or kidney disease. Is it really safe to wait so long? I feel my doctor has failed me, by allowing me to suffer from what is clearly another uti. šŸ™

The only remedies I have from them are cranberry powder supplement, premarin 3 x a week, drink lots of water, vitamin C, and am on a wait list for some sort of bladder physio. Nothing is working. I asked to be referred to a specialist. My uro surgeon will be recommending to the specialist that I be put on 2-3 months of antibiotics, but why can't she or my doc have done this? I have the sense of just being passed along to someone else to deal with it. I'm angry and in a lot of pain. Any advice would be welcome.

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celia16 | @celia16 | Jul 1 8:30pm

Wow, thatā€™s a lot to deal with. I can understand your frustration. Iā€™ve had a few UTIs before, but none until I was 40. My mom and some fiends of mine have had recurring ones though and for some, itā€™s quite chronic.

Most of what I have learned about bladder health over the last year has been from urologists, who are addressing womenā€™s health regarding menopause, as a lack of estrogen has a significant impact on the bladder. You didnā€™t say what stage of life you may be in, but depending on that, I would focus my response accordingly.

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therebedragons | @therebedragons | Jul 3 4:09am

I'm in my late 50s. I have been taking premarin for 2 months. I hardly ever had UTIs until late last year, then they started about every 3 weeks. It seems I just start to recover and then I get another.

At this point, I suspect that it was not properly treated (meds for too short a time), and it is going to need a longer dose of meds to clear up. My uro surgeon (I had a bladder/recto suspension 3 months ago) is going to recomment that I be on antibiotics for 2-3 months. I have to wait for the infectious specialist. Who knows how long that will take....I dread more months of this.

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1 reply
celia16 | @celia16 | Jul 3 12:53pm
In reply to @therebedragons "I'm in my late 50s. I have been taking premarin for 2 months. I hardly ever..." + (show)
@therebedragons

I'm in my late 50s. I have been taking premarin for 2 months. I hardly ever had UTIs until late last year, then they started about every 3 weeks. It seems I just start to recover and then I get another.

At this point, I suspect that it was not properly treated (meds for too short a time), and it is going to need a longer dose of meds to clear up. My uro surgeon (I had a bladder/recto suspension 3 months ago) is going to recomment that I be on antibiotics for 2-3 months. I have to wait for the infectious specialist. Who knows how long that will take....I dread more months of this.

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I can imagine it is frustrating, especially with how uncomfortable it can make you. What do the urine cultures show?

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1 reply
therebedragons | @therebedragons | Jul 3 5:58pm
In reply to @celia16 "I can imagine it is frustrating, especially with how uncomfortable it can make you. What do..." + (show)
@celia16

I can imagine it is frustrating, especially with how uncomfortable it can make you. What do the urine cultures show?

Jump to this post

They show a typical bladder infection. Every time. GP blames my surgeon for the chronic UTI's but I've had this since 4 months BEFORE the surgery.

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celia16 | @celia16 | Jul 3 6:20pm

I had an interest in chronic UTIs last year as my mother has been plagued with them for years. Sheā€™s had several surgeries. My interest was drawn to female urologists who had videos on You Tube addressing the issue, and normally advocating hormone therapy of some type. They explained how changes occur due to menopause and how it can be avoided or treated. I donā€™t recall all the details, except I was appalled no doctor ever explained this to me and I promptly started Estradiol cream. Iā€™m now exploring other HRT too. Thank goodness I havenā€™t had any UTIs in years.

I do take daily Cranberry, but not sure if that is what has helped me.

I noticed you are using premarin. I take it that has not made a difference. Have you considered getting a second opinion from someone who might have a more innovative approach. I hope you do find some relief. My mom now has severe bladder incontinence and her UTIā€™s are not as frequent.

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1 reply
therebedragons | @therebedragons | Jul 3 7:50pm
In reply to @celia16 "I had an interest in chronic UTIs last year as my mother has been plagued with..." + (show)
@celia16

I had an interest in chronic UTIs last year as my mother has been plagued with them for years. Sheā€™s had several surgeries. My interest was drawn to female urologists who had videos on You Tube addressing the issue, and normally advocating hormone therapy of some type. They explained how changes occur due to menopause and how it can be avoided or treated. I donā€™t recall all the details, except I was appalled no doctor ever explained this to me and I promptly started Estradiol cream. Iā€™m now exploring other HRT too. Thank goodness I havenā€™t had any UTIs in years.

I do take daily Cranberry, but not sure if that is what has helped me.

I noticed you are using premarin. I take it that has not made a difference. Have you considered getting a second opinion from someone who might have a more innovative approach. I hope you do find some relief. My mom now has severe bladder incontinence and her UTIā€™s are not as frequent.

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Thanks, and good luck to you as well. I have only been on premarin for around 2 months. I'm not sure if it takes longer, but yes, I have a referral to an infection specialist. God only knows how long the wait is for that. Hopefully not long. I do worry that these months of continual UTIs will cause bladder or kidney damage.

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