|
|
|
Home > Health and Fitness > Alternative Medicine > About Urinary Tract Infection - Prevention and Treatments
|
|
|
|
About Urinary Tract Infection - Prevention and Treatments
|
|
Urinary tract infection, or UTI, is colonization of microorganisms in
the urinary tract in such an amount and such a way that damages or
symptoms are produced. When
only the urethra and the bladder is affected, it is called lower
urinary tract infection. When the ureters and the kidneys are affected,
the name used is "upper urinary tract infection".
WHAT CAUSES URINARY TRACT INFECTION
UTI
is commonly caused by bacteria that also are present in the normal
flora in and around body openings and in the digestive tract, as for
example the bacterium Escherichia Coli. Most often the bacteria enter
the urinary tract through the urethral opening. Women more easily get
urinary tract infection because they have a shorter urethra so that the
bacteria have a shorter way to get into the bladder.
The
diseases Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Syphilis are normally not called UTI,
even though these infections often affect the urinary tract.
Defects
in the urinary system can make a person susceptible for UTI, like
strictures or valve-like structures in the urethra and defects causing
reflux from the bladder up through the ureters. Physical damages in the
urinary tract can also make it more easy for bacteria to colonize and
make infections.
Use of catheters or other instruments in the
urinary tract can introduce bacteria and also cause damages that give
the bacteria an easy opportunity to infect.
THE SYMPTOMS OF URINARY TRACT INFECTION
UTI
can occur acutely with very distinct symptoms. UTI can also develop
slowly and chronically with only small symptoms for a long time.
The symptoms by lower UTI are:
- Itching during urination.
- Pain in the bladder region.
- Urge to urinate, even though there is little urine in the bladder.
- Need to urinate during nights.
- Fever, usually mild.
- Cloudy urine with a bad smell.
- Pus discharged from the urethra or blended with the urine.
- Sometimes blood in the urine.
By upper urinary tract infection the same symptoms often occur, and in addition these symptoms will be felt:
- Nausea and vomiting.
- Pain in the sides of the back and sides of the stomach, at the height
of the kidneys, and often downwards towards the bladder region.
- Feeling of pressure in the stomach region.
- High fever with chills and shaking.
- Strong fatigue.
Symptoms of UTI must always be investigated, especially blood in the urine, since the cause can be a more serious disease.
COMPLICATIONS CAUSED BY URINARY TRACT INFECTION
By
upper UTI, the infection can spread deep into the kidney tissues and
destroy the structures that excrete urine. This process can gradually
lead to kidney failure. The infection can cause growth of scar tissue
in the urinary tract, for example in the urethra, that causes
obstruction and problems with urination.
By men the infection
can spread to the prostate and into the reproductive organs and destroy
the function of the reproductive system.
When a pregnant woman suffers from UTI, the child tend to be born with a too low birth weight.
DIAGNOSIS OF URINARY TRACT INFECTION
UTI
is diagnosed by a urine specimen. The specimen is analyzed for
substances produces by the disease process, like nitrites, leukocytes
or leukocyte esterase. One also performs urine culture to confirm the
presence of the bacteria.
When children have been diagnosed with
UTI, in is useful to perform urine flow studies and radiologic studies
of the urinary tract afterwards to see if there is urine reflux up to
the bladder or other abnormalities in the urinary tract. This is
sometimes done also by adults if UTI often recur.
STANDARD TREATMENT OF URINARY TRACT INFECTION
Urinary
tract infection is commonly treated with antibiotica, like:
trimethoprim, cephalosporins, nitrofurantoin, or a fluoroquinolone
(ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin).
Children that have been diagnosed
with some urinary tract defect are often given long term treatment with
small doses of antibiotics, but recent studies have thrown doubt upon
the validity of this regime.
ALTERNATIVE TREATMENT OF URINARY TRACT INFECTION
Although
standard treatment is usually effective, it does no always manage to
beat down a chronic UTI. Treatment with low doses of antibiotics to
prevent new outbreaks of UTI can give side effects and is neither
always effective.
Alternative measures for treatment can
therefore be useful in addition to the standard drugs, and the same
alternatives can be useful to prevent new outbreaks of UTI.
Cranberry
and blueberry can help against UTI by eliminating the bacteria causing
UTI. These herbs can be taken as juice or as tea made from dried
berries, and they are also found as concentrates in capsules.
The sugar type D-mannose also seems to help eliminating infectious bacteria from the urinary tract.
Cranberry,
blueberry and D-mannose seem to help by sticking to the bacteria or to
the inside lining of the urinary tract and make it difficult for the
bacteria to adhere to the inside walls and infect the tissues. Instead
the bacteria are flushed out by the urine.
Goldenseal root and Uva ursi also have effects against bacteria infecting the urinary tract.
Remedies
that alter the PH of the urine to be more acidic or more alkaline also
seem to counteract infectious bacteria. It seems that the bacteria
thrive only in a very narrow Ph range. Mineral supplements that contain
citrate alter the Ph in an alkaline direction, and can be used for this
purpose. Cranberry seems to give a more acidic urine and helps also
this way.
Some studies indicate that acupuncture can help to hinder new outbreak of urinary tract infection.
LIFESTYLE MEASURES TO PREVENT URINARY TRACT INFECTION
Many lifestyle measures can be used to prevent the outbreak of UTI and help to cure UTI.
- Wearing clothes that hinders the lower body to get cold is useful by many peoples experience.
- Drinking much water causes the infectious bacteria to be flushed out much easier.
-
To urinate after intercourse and cleaning the urethral opening
eliminates infectious bacteria transmitted by the sexual act before
they can invade the urinary tract.
- Using condoms by anal intercourse can hinder infectious bacteria in the rectum to enter a mans urethra.
- After anal intercourse, vaginal intercourse should be avoided without a good wash first.
-
Having a good intimate hygiene, and wiping from the front and backwards
by toilet visits can hinder bacteria from entering the urinary tract.
- Warm sitting baths without soap that can irritate can ameliorate the pain during, UTI and may enhance the healing process. |
|
Article Source:
http://articlesfind.info/ |
|
|
|
Please Rate this Article
|
|
|
|
What are you looking for? |
|
|
|
|
New Article
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Copyright © 2006 http://ArticlesFind.info. Partner sites: Noi
That, Dien thoai di dong, Du
lich, Thoi trang, Quản
lý cổ đông, Quan Ly Nha Hang,
Phan mem, Phan
mem, Phan mem viet nam
Phần mềm nhà hàng, Quản
lý nhà hàng, Diễn đàn ngân hàng,
Download phần mềm, Free
Article, Article Business, Global
in arm, Article Nutrition
article Confederation, Article
Find, Article News, Articles
Find, Article health, Article
Marketing
Phần mềm nhân sự Phần mềm bán hàng Phần mềm Khách sạn Quản lý khách sạn
Phần mềm diệt virus Download Firefox |Giấy Dán Tường | Giấy Dán Tường | Nội Thất Xuân Hòa| Nội Thất Hòa Phát| Nội thất 190 | Nội thất văn phòng | Bồn tắm cao cấp | Tủ bếp | Tủ bếp | Ván sàn gỗ tự nhiên | Rèm văn phòng | Giàn phơi thông minh | Thảm sàn | Thảm trải phòng | Thảm trải văn phòng | Trần thạch cao | Nội thất phòng khách | Thiết kế nhà | Giấy dán tường hàn quốc | Tủ bếp | Nội thất hòa phát | Nội thất xuân hòa | Rèm văn phòng | Giấy dán tường | nội thất hòa phát | Gan nhiễm mỡ | Tủ bếp đẹp | Vật liệu xây dựng | Vật liệu xây dựng hà nội | eglo | ván sàn | nội thất fami | Nội thất fami | Xuân hòa | Trần thạch cao | Thiết bị vệ sinh | Nội Thất Văn Phòng | Đèn Trang Trí | Thảm văn phòng | oto tải | Thiết kế xây nhà | Kiến Trúc | Đèn trang tríHoa trang trí | Sofa da | Sofa gỗ |
| Giấy dán tường| Giấy dán tường đẹp | Bàn để laptop | Học lái xe Học lái xe | Oto tai|Exchange sites: Contact Us (email: redbluevn@yahoo.co.uk)
|
|