Treatment and Prevention
Elderly people with asymptomatic bacteriuria usually don't require treatment.
For most UTIs, three days to a week of antibiotics are the best treatment.
Your doctor will help decide how long treatment should last. To prevent
the infection from returning, it's important to take all of your medication
until the end of the prescribed period. Pain relievers can help ease the burning
that occurs when you urinate.
Very serious infections - such as a severe kidney infection - may require an
intravenous drip of antibiotics. Aside from standard antibiotic treatment, children
with UTIs may be checked for urinary tract abnormalities.
Treatment for prostatitis often lasts for 6 to 12 weeks. If the infection returns
after that, long-term antibiotic therapy may be an option.
In women, recurring UTIs are usually caused by new bacterial infections.
If you get three or more UTIs within one year, your doctor may recommend preventative
medication to be taken daily or after sexual intercourse. During pregnancy,
women are routinely screened for bacteria in their urine. Prompt treatment of
UTIs is important. Up to a third of untreated cases lead to kidney infections,
which can cause premature labor and low birth-weight babies.
Some strategies for preventing UTIs are:
- urinating immediately after intercourse to clear out any bacteria that may
have entered
- giving up the diaphragm and choosing other birth control measures
- good toilet habits: women should wipe from front to back, to prevent bacteria
spread from the anus
- drinking plenty of fluids to flush bacteria out from the bladder
- not holding in urine for long periods, as this gives bacteria more opportunity
to multiply in the bladder
- taking showers rather than tub baths
- washing the skin around the vagina and anus daily
- not using deodorant sprays or feminine products such as douches in the genital
area that could irritate the urethra
While waiting for the effects of the antibiotics to take place, drink plenty
of fluids to ease your discomfort, but avoid anything that can irritate the
bladder, such as coffee, alcohol, soft drinks with caffeine, citrus juices,
and spicy foods, until the infection has cleared.