What is recurrent urinary tract infection?

A recurrent urinary tract infection is when a person has 3 urinary tract infections (UTIs) in 1 year or 2 UTIs in 6 months. The infection can recur because:

• A new UTI (re-infection)
• The infection was not cleared completely by treatment (persistence).

Symptoms of urinary tract infection

There are a lot of things that can masquerade as recurrent urinary tract infections.

• Overactive bladder
• Urinary urgency
• Urinary frequency
• Feeling burning, pain, or pressure when urinating
• Fever
• Back pain
• Flank pain

What should you do when you have a urinary tract infection?

Drink fluids: Drink a lot of fluids. More than 1.5 liters of fluid every day, specifically water and things that don’t irritate your bladder which you can check on my another where blog I discussed in detail what are bladder irritants? https://renamalikmd.com/what-are-bladder-irritants/. If you don’t like water, you can add some flavoring to the water, but try to avoid a lot of sugary drinks because those are bad for your health, and they can irritate the bladder lining. Emptying the Bladder: Make sure that you’re emptying your bladder completely so when you go to the bathroom, sit comfortably to empty your bladder. Make sure you’re not holding your bladder for long periods because the longer the urine sits in your bladder, the more likely it is to get infected. Cranberry Juice: There’s a lot of talk about cranberry juice does cranberry juice help but, it’s not the actual juice itself that helps it’s the cranberry extract called proanthocyanidins or PACs, so you have to make sure that you’re getting enough PACs. Most doctors recommend 36 milligrams, so they have them take tablets that say that they have 36 milligrams of PACs in the soluble form to make sure that they’re getting the right dose. One tablet a day can help prevent infections. Estrogen cream: For women who are post-menopausal getting estrogen cream and putting it in the vaginal area twice a week at night,  can help prevent infections.

When should you not ignore a UTI?

The times you should not ignore a UTI is if you are pregnant, if you are a man, or if you are a child. These are groups of people that need to see their primary care provider or a urologist if they’re getting urinary tract infections. In pregnant women, it can be very dangerous, so make sure that for those of you who fall into that category, get checked out immediately.