Can I Become Immune To The Antibiotics Used To Treat A Uti
Your body can actually get used to the antibiotics typically used to treat a urinary tract infection . This happens in people who have very frequent infections. With each UTI and use of antibiotics to treat it, the infection adapts and becomes harder to fight. This is called an antibiotic-resistant infection. Because of this, your healthcare provider may suggest alternative treatments if you have frequent UTIs. These could include:
- Waiting: Your provider may suggest that you watch your symptoms and wait. During this time, you may be encouraged to drink plenty of fluids in an effort to flush out your system.
- Intravenous treatment: In some very complicated cases, where the UTI is resistant to antibiotics or the infection has moved to your kidneys, you may need to be treated in the hospital. The medicine will be given to you directly in your vein . Once youre home, you will be prescribed antibiotics for a period of time to fully get rid of the infection.
Does Cranberry Juice Prevent A Uti
Some patients may want to use cranberry or cranberry juice as a home remedy to treat a UTI. Cranberry juice has not been shown to cure an ongoing bacterial infection in the bladder or kidney.
Cranberry has been studied as a preventive maintenance agent for UTIs. Studies are mixed on whether cranberry can really prevent a UTI. Cranberry may work by preventing bacteria from sticking to the inside of the bladder however, it would take a large amount of cranberry juice to prevent bacterial adhesion. More recent research suggests cranberries may have no effect on preventing a UTI
- According to one expert, the active ingredient in cranberries — A-type proanthocyanidins — are effective against UTI-causing bacteria, but is only in highly concentrated cranberry capsules, not in cranberry juice.
- However, cranberry was not proven to prevent recurrent UTIs in several well-controlled studies, as seen in a 2012 meta-analysis of 24 trials published by the Cochrane group.
- While studies are not conclusive, there is no harm in drinking cranberry juice. However, if you develop symptoms, see your doctor. Some people find large quantities of cranberry juice upsetting to the stomach.
Increasing fluid intake like water, avoiding use of spermicides, and urinating after intercourse may be helpful in preventing UTIs, although limited data is available.
Antibiotics Used For Uncomplicated Utis
If you are a healthy individual whose urinary tract is anatomically and functionally normal and you have no known heightened UTI susceptibility youve got whats dubbed an uncomplicated UTI, according to guidelines published in August 2019 in the Journal of Urology. For these individuals, antibiotics are considered the first-line of treatment.
The type of antibiotics you are prescribed and for how long is contingent on the type of bacteria detected in your urine, your current health status, and whether your UTI is uncomplicated or complicated. Depending on which antibiotic your doctor prescribes, women may need a single dose or up to a five-day course. For men, antibiotics are usually given for a slightly longer period of time, notes UpToDate.
Typically, if you are diagnosed with an uncomplicated UTI, one of the following will be prescribed as first-line treatment:
The following antibiotics are considered second-line treatments for UTI. They are generally chosen because of resistance patterns or allergy considerations:
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Most Common Antibiotic For Urinary Tract Infection
There are some medicines that do not mix well with nitrofurantoin.
Tell your doctor if youre taking these medicines before you start nitrofurantoin treatment:
- indigestion remedies known as antacids, particularly those that contain magnesium
- certain medicines for gout, including probenecid or sulfinpyrazone
- cystitis remedies you can buy from a pharmacy
- antibiotics known as quinolones, including nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, norfloxacin, ofloxacin and moxifloxacin
Typhoid vaccine given by mouth may not work properly if youre taking nitrofurantoin. This does not apply to typhoid vaccines given by injection.
How Do I Know If My Particular Strain Of Uti Is Resistant To A Particular Drug
The only way is to get a urine culture. The lab results will identify the germ and what would be effective in treating the infection. But it can take several days to get the results.
Most patients want an immediate prescription so doctors usually make a best-guess determination of what drug will work given a patients symptoms and history.
The importance of history cannot be overstated if you have had a previous U.T.I., a previous resistant U.T.I., or have traveled outside the country, your history can help a doctor decide which drug to use.
Increasingly, experts tell us that you should ask for a culture when you go in for a U.T.I. treatment, even if you get an immediate prescription. The culture will allow a doctor to change the drug if the first one does not work.
That said, there is an important catch about when to do a urine culture. Often, it will show bacteria in the bladder even when an infection is not present. Some amount of bacteria is normal. The Infection Disease Society of America cautions doctors against doing cultures when symptoms of a U.T.I. are not present. The culture likely presence of bacteria can then lead to prescription of unnecessary antibiotics, contributing to the rise of resistance through overuse of the drugs.
Finally, some U.T.I.s, even when there are symptoms, can clear up on their own. This is one of many reasons to seek the care of an informed professional.
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Treatment For Urinary Tract Infection
The best cystitistreatment is an antibiotic. Your dose and the type of antibiotic will depend on the severity of yourinfection as well as other factors, including:
- Side effects from past antibiotic treatments
Before your doctor prescribes you an antibiotic for UTI, he needs to determine the type of bacteriacausing the infection first. He will take a urine sample to confirm your infection. Samples of thebacteria will be grown in the lab for a couple of days. This culture will help your doctor determine thetype of bacteria thats causing the infection.
Treatment Strategies For Recurrent Utis
Recurrent urinary tract infections, defined as three or more UTIs within 12 months, or two or more occurrences within six months, is very common among women these but arent treated exactly the same as standalone UTIs. One of the reasons: Continued intermittent courses of antibiotics are associated with allergic reactions, organ toxicities, future infection with resistant organisms, and more.
Because of this, its strongly recommended that you receive both a urinalysis and urine culture from your healthcare provider prior to initiating treatment. Once the results are in, the American Urological Association suggests that healthcare professionals do the following:
- Use first-line treatments. Nitrofurantoin, TMP-SMX, and fosfomycin are the initial go-tos. However, specific drug recommendations should be dependent on the local antibiogram. An antibiogram is a periodic summary of antimicrobial susceptibilities that helps track drug resistance trends.
- Repeat testing. If UTI symptoms persist after antimicrobial therapy, clinicians should repeat the urinalysis, urine culture, and antibiotic susceptibility testing to help guide further management.
- Try vaginal estrogen. For peri- and post-menopausal women with recurrent UTIs, vaginal estrogen therapy is recommended to reduce risk of future UTIs.
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Can I Treat A Uti Without Antibiotics
UTI treatment without antibiotics is NOT usually recommended. An early UTI, such as a bladder infection , can worsen over time, leading to a more severe kidney infection . However, a small study has suggested early, mild UTIs might clear up on their own. It’s always best to check with your doctor if you are having UTI symptoms.
Pregnant women should always see a doctor as soon as possible if they suspect they might have a UTI, as this can lead to a greater risk of delivering a low birth weight or premature infant.
Antibiotics For Acute And Uncomplicated Urinary Tract Infections
First-line treatment for an uncomplicated UTI may start with a single dose of fosfomycin or nitrofurantoin twice per day for five days, or sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim twice per day for three days. These medications can be started based on your symptoms and urinalysis results, and should be effective in most cases.
Although much less common, men may also get this type of UTI. The choice of antibiotics is the same, but they may be given for a longer time because bacteria may move into the prostate gland and take longer to treat.
When doctors diagnose an uncomplicated UTI, they are usually diagnosing a type of UTI called cystitis, which means a bladder infection. In fact, the terms UTI, cystitis and bladder infection are often used interchangeably. Acute uncomplicated cystitis is another medical term for a common UTI that has not spread or become severe.
The term uncomplicated refers to a simple UTI found in a generally healthy adult who:
- Is not pregnant or postmenopausal
- Is not immunocompromised
- Has no structural abnormalities in the urinary tract
- Has no other diseases
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Can A Uti Go Away On Its Own
While most patients with a UTI will be prescribed antibiotics, the truth is, uncomplicated urinary tract infections are often self-limiting, meaning they can potentially run their course sans antibiotic treatment, noted a 2018 report in PLoS Medicine.
In fact, that same report found that more than one-half of the women studied experienced a UTI resolution without the use antibiotics. However, since kidney infections occurred in 7 out of 181 women using ibuprofen, the researchers concluded that, at this time, they cannot recommend ibuprofen alone as initial treatment to women with uncomplicated UTIs.
A better idea, for now: Simply wait until a positive urine culture comes back before treating with antibiotics.
Different Tests For Different Bacteria
What tests can be helpful if infected?
The initial test to screen for a UTI in clinical practice is a urine dipstick. The dipstick testing uses chemical strips to detect the presence of compounds named nitrites, or an enzyme called leukocyte esterase in a clean-catch urine sample. Both are potential pointers of UTI. LE reveals white blood cells in the urine, which are a likely indicator of UTI.
If the dipstick testing is positive, the doctors may then order a urine culture to confirm the results. In practice, a urine culture is usually done in women suspected of having a complicated UTI or in whom the initial treatment has failed. Urine culture is, however, the benchmark test that identifies all types of UTIs. So, why is the dipstick test not regarded as the gold standard for diagnosing a UTI?
The Pitfalls of Urine Dipstick
Although clinicians most often use urine dipstick to screen for a UTI initially, the test has certain drawbacks. For instance, this test can miss UTIs in pregnant women and the elderly. In fact, during pregnancy, the diagnosis of UTI doesnt rely on finding nitrites or pus cells. But urine is labeled as containing evidence of UTI if a clean-catch sample shows 105 bacteria per milliliters of urine.
In addition, the urine of the elderly is most likely to be infected by gram-positive bugs that lack the capability of converting nitrates to nitrites or testing positive for LE. Thus, nitrite and LE tests fall short of picking up all kinds of bacteria.
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Ranking The Best Antibiotics For Uti Of 2021
Antibiotics for UTI alleviate the pain and discomfort of urinary tract infections quickly and reliably.
Every year more than six million Americans visit their doctors seeking treatment of UTIs. The overwhelming majority are women, who are 30 times more likely to suffer UTIs than men.
In nearly all confirmed UTI cases, antibiotics are prescribed and start providing relief within 24 hours. Typically, within a few days, most or all symptoms have been eliminated.
There are more than 100 different antibiotics, but not all are useful in treating a UTI. The following are the best antibiotics for UTI of 2021. Speak to your doctor to determine which one is right for you.
Common Side Effects With Antibiotic Use
Each antibiotic is responsible for its own unique list of side effects, and the list is usually extensive. Be sure to discuss your individual antibiotic side effects with your healthcare provider. However, there are side effects that are common to most antibiotics, regardless of class or drug:
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Vaccines Targeting Bacterial Toxins And Proteases
The UPEC pore-forming toxin HlyA has also received attention as a potential vaccine target and was evaluated in a mouse model of pyelonephritis to assess protection against renal damage,. Vaccination with HlyA reduced the incidence of renal scaring compared with controls however, it did not protect against UPEC colonization of the kidneys. In addition, in a mouse model of UTI, vaccination with the P. mirabilis haemolysin, HpmA, did not provide protection against bacterial colonization. However, vaccination with Pta, an alkaline protease with toxic effects towards epithelial cells, displayed promising results in a mouse model of UTI, protecting against upper UTI, although bacterial burdens in the bladder remained unaffected. Thus, although haemolysins and proteases might provide effective vaccine targets for preventing upper UTIs, additional studies are needed to determine the effectiveness of these enzymes as targets for vaccines.
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Complications And Side Effects
Antibiotics can cause side effects. Depending on which medication your doctor prescribes for your UTI, the side effects may include:
- Abdominal discomfort or pain
Some people can be allergic to certain antibiotics. If you develop hives, a rash, or other skin changes after beginning your medication, you may be sensitive to your prescription and should seek medical advice.
If you begin to cough or wheeze, feel lightheaded, a fast heartbeat or clammy skin, feel confused, a tightness in your throat, or have difficulty breathing, you may be experiencing a medical emergency called anaphylaxis. Call your doctor or go to the emergency room immediately.
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Urinary Tract Infections In Women
UTIs are common, particularly with increasing age. Women are more likely to get a UTI than men. Nearly 1 in 3 women will have a UTI needing treatment before the age of 24.
In women, the urethra is short and straight, making it easier for germs to travel into the bladder. For some women, UTIs relate to changes in their hormonal levels. Some are more likely to get an infection during certain times in their menstrual cycle, such as just before a period or during pregnancy.
In older women, the tissues of the urethra and bladder become thinner and drier with age as well as after menopause or a hysterectomy. This can be linked to increased UTIs.
During pregnancy, the drainage system from the kidney to the bladder widens so urine does not drain as quickly. This makes it easier to get a UTI. Sometimes germs can move from the bladder to the kidney causing a kidney infection. UTIs during pregnancy can result in increased blood pressure, so it is very important to have them treated as soon as possible.
Women are more at risk of repeated UTIs if they:
- use spermicide jelly or diaphragm for contraception
- have had a new sexual partner in the last year
- had their first UTI at or before 15 years of age
- have a family history of repeated UTIs, particularly their mother
- suffer from constipation
What Is The Most Effective Antibiotic For Uti
While mild UTIs usually go away on their own with sufficient hydration, most cases of moderate or recurrent UTIs may require medical treatment involving antibiotics and painkillers.
In order to determine what type of antibiotic you need, a urine sample is needed to identify the type of bacteria infecting your urinary tract. A urine culture is conducted on the sample, examining it for antibiotic sensitivity and specificity. It may take 3-4 days to get the results.
Doctors do not recommend taking a broad-spectrum antibiotic without a urine culture because doing so may contribute to antibiotic resistance, where the germ becomes stronger than the antibiotic.
Once the culture results are back, depending on the sensitivity, your doctor may prescribe the following:
- Cephalexin or Ceftriaxone
- Doxycycline and tetracyclines
- Injectable antibiotics such as tobramycin, amikacin and gentamicin
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Who Needs Antibiotics For Uti
While the question seems like it answers itself, treatment of UTIs is not always a straightforward affair. There are different bacteria involved, infections are discovered at different points in their pathology, and different people respond to antibiotics differently. So, while anyone suffering from a UTI will probably need to consider antibiotics, which one is the right one will vary from case to case and from person to person.
How the antibiotic is administered will also need to be determined on a case by case basis. As will the duration of treatment. These days, single-dose antibiotic treatment may also be a viable alternative.
First Are Antibiotics Necessary
Taking antibiotics should not be treated lightly, especially given the increased risk of developing multi-drug resistant bacteria like ESBL E.coli, for which we are running out of treatments.
- While burning when you pee and the urge to urinate, are common UTI symptoms, they are not always indicative of a urinary tract infection.
- Antibiotics alone are not as effective against mature bacterial biofilms.
- An incomplete course or prophylactic antibiotics can actually promote the growth of bacterial biofilms.
- Antioxidants, available in N-acetylcysteine supplements can increase the effectiveness of antibiotics and help you fight mature bacterial biofilms.
- Natural supplements like D-Mannose can be effective at the first sign of a UTI and dont come with the extensive side effect profile of many antibiotics
Therefore, you and your physician should ensure that necessary testing is done before prescribing antibiotics. This includes analyzing accurate local antibiotic resistance data to make sure you get the best empirical antibiotics until more data is available.
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