Recurring/Chronic UTIs

[incon1982]

This is some new research that is pretty amazing and thought provoking. So often we think our UTIs are our fault somehow. But this research tells us that it may not be anything that we are doing to cause repeat infections.

If you suffer from chronic UTIs, you may want to read this article! Fascinating!!

npr.org/2023/09/05/11977382...?

[BarrySimpson]

I never had a urinary tract infection before I had an accident in 2013 causing a spinal injury, paralysis from my shoulders down, spasticity and double incontinence. I had a suprapubic catheter installed in May 2013. I am sure that is the cause of my UTIs. I have noticed that I am most likely to get a UTI when I have leakage around my catheter entry site: bacteria are entering there. My UTIs are easily fixed with Nitrofurantoin. I could not see a way to fix recurrent UTIs on the site mentioned in your post, but I could not hear the could commentary on my computer.

About three-quarters of my UTIs are accompanied by sediment in my catheter which can cause blockages, which for me have been more serious than the UTIs. Given that they are fixed by Nitrofurantoin, it has been possible to identify what bacteria are causing the UTIs and the sediment. Only two bacteria on the Nitrofurantoin hit list can kill bacteria causing UTIs - Escherichia Coli and Staphylococcus saprophyticus. Of these, only the second is likely to create enough sediment to cause the blockages. The full story is available at

dailystrength.org/user/prof... Preventing UTIs and Catheter Blockages

[incon1982 Administrator in reply to BarrySimpson]

Thank you for sharing this.

Everyone has a unique situation. And what works well for one person may not for another or even be a hazard. We always have to remember that. Certain antibiotics will work for one person and not for another. What causes a UTI for one person is not what is causing chronic infections for another. So sharing our different stories and also what is happening in the research field is important as it makes us realize how difficult it is to treat chronic UTIs, how much we don't know and are still learning, and how important it is to truly understand each unique patient's circumstances.