Uti'S

[Puggsley]

Hi all,

Does anyone have experience with UTI's? I thought I'd got over one, and now its back again. Thankfully I've not got too much feeling down there, so Im missing out on much of the discomfort. Im feeling off, and the frequency of needing to go as well as the urges are a lot worse then normal.

One thing Im puzzled by, My GP this time round gave me an effervescent drink to reduce the acid content of my urine (along with the antibiotics). I thought the point of drinking cranberry juice was to keep the acidity level up to make life harder for bugs down there.

Im obviously either not being quite clean enough when using my catheters, or just a bit run down at the moment, but I was wondering if anyone had experience with UTI's and could offer some advice on what worked for them.

Thanks in advance!

Puggsley

[Baby Brian]

Sorry, I really don't. I did have a nasty UTI once (not from catheters though). I was completely jaundice and starting to loose the ability to concentrate. My doc gave me an antibiotic overdose and two large IV bags to get me back then followed up with antibiotics for 5 more days to get me healthy again. I have used catheters for 7 months though which drained right into my diaper. I drank lots and lots of cranberry and never go a UTI. The effervescent drink could be just the opposite though. It would reduce any burning feeling you might be getting when peeing by turning it towards a more neutral ph like plain water. If you already have the UTI then that would make it easier to flush out the infection maybe?

[Puggsley]

Thanks Brian. Sorry to hear about your UTI, but its nice to hear that you managed to use catheters without adverse affects. Is there anything else you did while you had your catheter in to maintain your health?

I've been trying to do the basics, keeping clean, doing things the way they taught in the hospital, and drinking plenty of cranberry juice. Im sure looking forward to not needing to use the catheters anymore, but have to use them until Im retaining less then 100ml after peeing. Currently, I can only pee a little when Im really full, but like yourself I don't get much warning, and if I don't get to the toilet quickly I leak.

Thanks again.

[Baby Brian]

Other than just keeping clean down there, the only other thing I can think of was that I changed my cath once every week.

[foundout]

I have a history of recurrent uti'a. I thought I was done with then after 6 months of antibiotics, but I've had several since then, including possibly one now. The first one was the worst because I didn't know what was going on. I had a 104 degree temp for three days and finally had to get my parents to take me to the hospital because my asshole brother wouldn't. At that point I had a kidney, prostate, and bladder infection. I had to quit my new job because I was out for so long and didn't qualify for FMLA. I'd never had incontinence until this one. I'm now wishing I had some thinner, quieter diapers instead of Abena L4s.

As for what helps, go buy some Azo at the chemist. It numbs your urinary tract, but also turns your pee red/orange and will stain clothing. If you wear disposables, this won't be a problem, but it would mess up cloth diapers. Also the pure cranberry juice that they sell at health foods stores. One brand I buy is Lakewood. This is strong stuff and very tart, but works better than the cocktail stuff they sell everywhere else. Also, I was told to put antibiotic ointment around the tip of my penis the last time I had to be catheterized for an extended period of time(2 weeks). I didn't get a uti, but I don't know if that helped or if it was my excessive cleanliness.

[Huggie]

Several years back I had to wear a catheter intermittently to correct a urine retention problem also, scar tissue was blocking my urethra. I went through three years of dilation treatments and the insertion of a catheter for 10 days at a time. What I learned was you must drink lots of water, plain ole H2o. Cranberry juice from what I understand helps your kidneys function more. You want to void as much as you can when you are cathed, voiding is what rids the buggies from the body. And you must wash your penis & meatus (head) thoroughly & often. I used to plug the end of the catheter and manually release the urine hourly then hook up to a catch bag for night. Many times I would drip into a diaper but again you need to ensure that you dilute the urine with water to cut down the risk of a UTI while dripping into a diaper. As the urine lays in the diaper bacteria grows and can work its way up the open end of the catheter or as it comes in contact with the meatus. Remember the hose is contaminated outside the penis and collects buggies as it moves about inside the diaper or after voiding from the hose if plugged. The hose also irritates the pee hole too ... very common problems. I was prescribed Levaquin (a synthetic antibiotic) for this procedure too. In review drink lots of water, and wash hands before and after fussing with the catheter and clean the genital area thoroughly as well as the exposed hose & plug.

On a personal note I miss my catheter and dilation treatments

[Puggsley]

Hi there,

Thanks for the advice.

I hope your feeling better Foundout. I'll have a look around for some better cranberry juice. Currently Im using Oceanspray, but I'll check the heath food stores for something better. Cranberry juice isn't that common down here though, Im a little limited in what I can use. One Dr suggested supplements, as the juice we get here is pretty expensive. I'd try AZO, but I cant find anything similar down here.

After talking to my specialist, I've gone onto a two month course of antibiotics to try and return things to normal. Nitrofurantoin for one month, and something else for a second. Its the same stuff they used when I was in the hospital cathed full time after the accident. Apparently, using catheters the way I've been instructed (at least four times a day to deal with retention issues), you can expect a higher bacterial content in the bladder in any case. The deal is keeping things from building up. Your right Huggie, I need to be drinking more. I think Ive been drinking less recently because my bladder has shrunk, and unconsciously I've been drinking less to reduce the frequency of urges and needing to go.

Oh, if anyones interested, lofric.com is the brand of catheter supplied by my insurer, and their site has some interesting how to vids.

The antibiotics have settled things down somewhat.

Thanks again.

Puggsley

[foundout]

Puggsley, it's all cleared up now. Thanks for the concern. Have you looked into other catheter manufacturers? I was told at one point that I would need to self-cath when i kept going into retention because of my back. This was after having an indwelling foley catheter and leg bag for two weeks. Thankfully, I stopped going into retention and didn't have to go down that road. But, they had shown me several different catheters designed for self-cathing. They also said that there were ways to clean them so that you could use them more than once to save money. Are you cleaning and reusing your caths? They should be sterile when you are introducing them into your bladder. Also, have you considered trying a different brand, despite the fact that your insurance won't pay for them?

[Puggsley]

Hi Foundout.

I've changed brands of catheters once. I was using a speedicath brand while in the hospital, but after a couple of weeks of no issues, I had problems getting them in, and a massive blood clot up there. The lofric catheters Im using now just slide right in. I did have a couple of weeks where I had of a little blood down there, but thats passed now.

I dont have to reuse the catheters, though I've heard of some people who do. It just seems like too much of a gamble for it to be worthwhile. My insurer even pays for baby wipes to clean your hands and penis as part of the self catheterising process.

Im hoping that things will start to head back to normal soon. Im managing to pass around 150mls now, but only when I get the urge to tell me that Im full, out of a total bladder volume of 450-500ml. Im still retaining a fair bit, but its been the positive side of the UTI's. I started being able to pass more around the time I first got a UTI. Not that its a good reason to get one of course, but heck. Everything has a silver lining.

Puggsley

[Billiardnut]

Hi all,

Does anyone have experience with UTI's? I thought I'd got over one, and now its back again. Thankfully I've not got too much feeling down there, so Im missing out on much of the discomfort. Im feeling off, and the frequency of needing to go as well as the urges are a lot worse then normal.

One thing Im puzzled by, My GP this time round gave me an effervescent drink to reduce the acid content of my urine (along with the antibiotics). I thought the point of drinking cranberry juice was to keep the acidity level up to make life harder for bugs down there.

Im obviously either not being quite clean enough when using my catheters, or just a bit run down at the moment, but I was wondering if anyone had experience with UTI's and could offer some advice on what worked for them.

Thanks in advance!

Puggsley

if you are having UTIs you may have prostrate issues. One thing you can do is take cranberry pills which you can get at WalMart or any health food / supplement store - Those help with the urinary tract