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What Is The Cause And Treatment For UTI?
Question: Hi, My wife, 32, Indonesian, about once or twice a year, for the last few years, comes down with a rapid illness out of the blue. What can start from maybe a headache or just slightly off feeling, will soon desend into terrible rhs body pain, around the kidney area as well as fever. This can last from 3 to 4 days. We have been to the hospital twice for this & although i know the doctors try, twice now they have come up with different reasons as to why but i/we don't believe them. They just hand out the tablets & because we know it goes away by itself normally she lays there till it would pass then they proclaim cured & we leave. But it will in time come back. Last year she had blod tests, kidney tests all saying nothing wrong. This time it is accompanied with pain when she urinates ( this occured on the 2nd day only & not from the outset. She describes the pain as a dull throbbing above her vagina & also urinating today is frequent & only in little amounts. As on cue the rhs back pain has subsided & now its this problem urinating properly causing us worries. I constantly tell her to keep hydrated to no avail also. Can't think of anything else to provide, other than 4 years ago we both were tested for std's & hiv that luckily we're all negative. She also had an operation to clear blocked fallopian tubes late 2012. (when they tested for blockage she reacted to the XXXXXXX & spent 3 days in hospital clearing that up. We were told the operation was a success but we're still not pregnant. HOPING to maybe get some info on what i can tell the doctors to look for if we need to go to a specialist ( which specialist you think would be best? ) thanks you for your time ..... J.....
Brief Answer:
DETAILED BELOW
Detailed Answer:
Hello
Thanks for writing to us with your health concern.
As far as I can understand, you have two concerns ( correct me if I am wrong here ).
First is the semi annual or annual illness. All the symptoms point towards a urinary tract infection.
You should see a Nephrologist for sure, and ensure that the following workup is done -
1. Urine routine microscopy and culture.
2. Ultrasound of the KUB ( kidney ureter bladder ) region.
3. A pyelogram if possible ( this involves XXXXXXX injection so please mention the earlier reaction to the XXXXXXX to your specialist ).
Am pretty much sure that the symptoms all point towards a lingering urinary tract infection.
Hydration will help, also cranberry juice plays a role.
Please get her blood sugars tested for latent diabetes.
The second issue regarding conception.
You need to consult an Infertility specialist for that.
If the tubes are open ( please upload the reports so I can tell you for sure if that is so - the discharge summary of the laparoscopy for example ), then the following workup should be done -
1. Your semen analysis.
2. Her hormonal levels - FSH, LH, TSH, Prolactin, OGTT.
3. Follicular monitoring - serial tracking of the egg follicle by ultrasound to check for ovulation.
4. A thorough internal check up - per speculum and per vaginum to detect any lingering infection there.
Once this is done, the treatment can be tailored accordingly.
Take regular folic acid supplements and maintain an ideal BMI.
All the best.
Please feel free to discuss further.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
thank you for the answer
At the moment we are trying to solve this problem & will further explore having a baby later on.
We'll give that a try, would it be necessary to go to the hospital only when the episode is under way? This isn't always possible due to our location. Would the possible infection always be present & detectable? Would the possibility of a UTI possibly explain a sometime odour as well? Why would in only come on once or twice a year, with nothing seeming to bring it on as it's completely random?
Any other info, names of good medicines etc would be appreciated as unfortunately here we often get asked what we need by the doctors/specialists
Brief Answer:
EXPLAINED BELOW
Detailed Answer:
Hello
Thank you for the appreciation.
Yes it is better to consult a doctor while there is an ongoing infection.
However, given the recurrences and the frequency of occurrence, it would not hurt to have a consultation anyway instead of waiting for a fresh episode.
Yes, UTI is often associated with vaginal / genital infections too, thus odour, itching, discharge , burning are all inter related.
The body's immunity surmounts it periodically, hence the occasional breakout.
Medications depend on the reports.
For example if a particular organism is isolated on the urine report, then medications would be dictated by the culture report.
Offhand, without evaluation, no medication can be prescribed.
Take care.
Note: Revert back with your gynae reports to get a clear medical analysis by our expert Gynecologic Oncologist. Click here.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Yogesh D
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