U T I's

Interesting study about cranberry juice NemosMum - thank-you for posting that.
That's funny Esspee ( but not really) - I was frequently diagnosed with that - alas would be fairly unlikely to happen now.
I would urge anyone who is suffering from recurrent UTIs to follow Havemercy's advice and go and get some Vagifem or oestrogen cream from your GP if you are not taking it already - and even if you are on HRT because vaginal atrophy can make infections more likely and also can mimic infections. Then it may not be necessary for all these other treatments and drugs, or at least less often? The NICE Guidelines on menopause talk about this too.

I take two Cranberry tablets daily which I buy online from Healthspan. They are high strength. These have been part of my daily routine for several years now and are a preventative not a cure, and for me work very well. One of the reasons that can cause UTIs is insufficient fluid intake each day.

Am I the only one who looks back at the bouts of "honeymoon" cystitis width a smile and a little sadness that it has been a long time since I had that problem.

I suffer from UTIs a lot. Some people are just prone to them apparently. My elder son does too so not just women. My doctor gives me a packet of tablets to keep at home so I can start to treat it as soon as I get first symptoms- why is it always at night!!
There is a new tablet out now better than the Trimiprothrem & it does work quickly. I thought it was cancer of womb that nuns do not get due to no sexual contact. My DH has been impotent for over a decade & I still get UTIs regularly. Just one of those things.

I used to suffer dreadfully with frequent and often severe 'Urine infections' many years ago, so you all have my utmost sympathy. I then discovered a marvellous book about Cystitis by Angela Kilmartin, who was a major sufferer. There are MANY reasons why you can get a UTI, and this lady lists them all. This book turned my life around.
The most important thing that I did was to stop wearing tights and nylon knickers all of the time. These for me were the main triggers. I changed to cotton knickers and stockings, and that was the turning point for me. I have very rarely had a UTI since then, and when I have, I know now that it is because I have not had enough fluids during the hot weather.
For those of you experiencing the painful symptoms of a UTI, here is a brilliant first aid remedy.
Please note that this is NOT a cure for a UTI, and that you should still see your GP
Firstly, take 2 paracetamol for the pain. Please check though that you are not taking other medication that may contain paracetamol as you do not want to overdose.
Add a heaped teaspoon of Bicarbonate of Soda to a large glass of water. It may not taste very pleasant, but it does help as the bicarb helps neutralises the urine and helps stop the stinging. In the past, I have followed this regime, and it has been my saving grace.
I know that Cranberry Juice is good, but you must get the real thing, Pure cranberry juice.
The cranberry 'juice' sold in supermarkets are just a drink with little cranberry juice and as such a waste of time and indeed money.
I hope that this helps all of you who are suffering this awful condition xx

For more years than was good for me I had recurring UTIs,
always treated with "mist pot cit" and then ABs .
Then I saw a pharmacist who knew about homeopathic treatments.
I took Cantharis and the UTIs never came back. I still watch
my fluid intake carefully or I get that nasty stinging feeling.
Worth a try maybe?

If you are suffering recurrent infections, you might find avoiding the use of bath oils/salts/bubbles will help you enormously. I used to suffer terrible UTI's when I was younger and the antibiotics used to give me Candida. That made me sore and so then I found I had a UTI again. It was a vicious cycle. Things only got better when I stopped using sanitary protection, soap, biological washing powder, laundry conditioner and a host of other products which would set up the cycle.

Back in the 60's they used to give you sulphur tablets which turned everything fluorescent yellow but made you feel you were peeing olive oil. Don't know why you don't get them now, I thought they were brilliant. I always drink gallons of water at the first sign of UTI and am mostly able to halt it that way.

Years ago...doh!

Year ago, I had a urinary infection and was prescribed a course of trimethoprim. I turned out to be allergic to it and all skin surfaces (internal too) swelled, turned scarlet then blue.... the cure was indeed worse than the disease.

In the recovery phase, whilst in the garden, a neighbour remarked 'I hope you're not thinking of going anywhere looking like that'!

Trimepothrim gave me the most splitting headache of my life !!!

When I was younger I suffered terribly with cystitis. What I read was as soon as you have the uncomfortable feeling to drink a large cup of black coffee. It doesn't always stop it but does help. I am allergic to quite a few antibiotics so when I had it in hospital they prescribed mist.pot.citrate or potassium citrate mixture. It dies taste horrible but the ward Sister said to take a tablesooon in warm water with a little fruit squash added. It has always worked for me. You can buy it over the counter at a pharmacy. Silly me forgot to buy a bottle while I was in England last month. Hoping I won't any UTIs. As you know UTIs in very old people can be serious and my late Mum started to suffer with them and I didnt think continually taking antibiotics was good for her so I started giving her a daily cranberry tablet (from Healthspan) and she never had another UTI.

And as for prevention:
Cranberry Juice Fails to Prevent Recurrent Urinary Tract Infection: Results From a Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial
Cibele Barbosa-Cesniket al, Clinical Infectious Diseases, Volume 52, Issue 1, 1 January 2011, Pages 23–30,https://doi.org/10.1093/cid/ciq073
Published: 01 January 2011
Abstract
Background. A number of observational studies and a few small or open randomized clinical trials suggest that the American cranberry may decrease incidence of recurring urinary tract infection (UTI).
Methods. We conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of the effects of cranberry on risk of recurring UTI among 319 college women presenting with an acute UTI. Participants were followed up until a second UTI or for 6 months, whichever came first. A UTI was defined on the basis of the combination of symptoms and a urine culture positive for a known uropathogen. The study was designed to detect a 2-fold difference between treated and placebo groups, as was detected in unblinded trials. We assumed 30% of participants would experience a UTI during the follow-up period.
Results. Overall, the recurrence rate was 16.9% (95% confidence interval, 12.8%–21.0%), and the distribution of the recurrences was similar between study groups, with the active cranberry group presenting a slightly higher recurrence rate (20.0% vs 14.0%). The presence of urinary symptoms at 3 days, 1–2 weeks, and at ≥1 month was similar between study groups, with overall no marked differences.
Conclusions. Among otherwise healthy college women with an acute UTI, those drinking 8 oz of 27% cranberry juice twice daily did not experience a decrease in the 6-month incidence of a second UTI, compared with those drinking a placebo.

From the NICE guidelines for Lower Urinary Tract Infections:
Treatments not recommended
Cranberry juice or other cranberry products are not recommended as there is no good evidence to support their use for treating urinary tract infection.
Although urine alkalization has been traditionally used to relieve the symptoms of urinary tract infection, there is a lack of good evidence to support its use.

I'm another one who has suffered these horrible infections, and I was prescribed antibiotics (can't remember their name) which didn't clear the infection and made my asthma dreadful; I couldn't stop coughing however much Ventolin I used, so my doctor gave me Trimethoprim, a seven day course, which cleared the infection and caused no side effects (the asthma symptoms improved over a few days with my regular medications then) so now I always keep a course of Trimethoprim at home, and I wouldn't dream of going on holiday without it. I also use Ovestin twice a week, and I take a cranberry tablet every day, but cranberry only helps to prevent ITUs, it will not cure them.
ITUs are horrible, and they come on so quickly, so I hope you all find something that works for you.

If you read the side effects on almost any medication you will see the possibility of rashes, stomach ache, breathing problems, nausea, tiredness etc. etc., usually about 20 symptoms long. They have to list them even if only one person reported it as a side effect in trials.

I was prescribed a single-use sachet of an antibiotic called Monuril, I'm not in the UK but I see it's available there, Just the one sachet, and the URI is supposed to vanish. Haven't used it yet, but a couple of friends swear by it. This is it www.dokteronline.com/en/monuril/

Be careful that the rash on your leg isnt cellulitis. This can be a result of an UTI and can turn into sepsis. Extremely dangerous. Get well soon. Hugs. Xx

I am allergic to both of those drugs and decided to use cranberry in a much more systematic way. Since then (three years ago, I have had no flare up of my previous ongoing problems. I use organic cranberry powder which I buy from amazon, and sprinkle a little on my breakfast every morning. The enzymes in the cranberry stick to the bladder wall and prevent the bacteria that cause UTIs from lingering. That's the science, and it's good. I have passed this remedy on to several friends and those who have become part of the routine cranberry brigade are very satisfied. Cranberry drinks do not work as in many cases the enzymes are almost all removed during the processing. The organic powder, however, is not subject to the various chemical processes undergone by the juice and retains its therapeutic properties.

Last week took our cat to the vets for nail clipping ( we have the equipment to do it but she won't let us near ) unfortunately the vet nicked her so the cat bit back (me !) It bled like anything and despite cleaning, hibiscrub etc woke up with it swollen and infected. Have a week's course of Doxycycline and Metronidazole the loo is my best friend this week! I'm feeling all your pains.

I got "potcit" from the chemist and it was wonderful - horrible tasting until you get used to it but really the best thing I tried to clear it up.

I find drinking lemon barley water helps with UTI's
Have no idea why it does but it does

I really would recommend vaginal HRT - have not had a single UTI since they were prescribed for recurrent bladder infections. I insert a tiny tablet twice a week and it seems to keep everything "young" as it were

I do wonder with women and UTIs if their husbands have anything to do with them. Apparently nuns never get them? Not sure if this is true but now I'm single I rarely get any problems.

Hey ladies, I think you are talking about NITROfurantoin! Hope you are feeling better Auntieflo. I'm also a sufferer of bladder discomfort, but it's not always an infection. Particularly problematic at the moment as I'm having chemo. Here's something I've come across which can be helpful: you can see what your GP is advised to do by Googling "Clinical Knowledge Summaries cystitis" or whatever your complaint is. These are the crib sheets produced by National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to keep your GP up to date.