Toddler in a lot of pain when weeing but no infection?

[Bol87]

My 2.5 year year old has been showing all the signs of a water infection for the last couple days - started with irritability that I couldn’t pin point, a lot of wriggling and not sitting still & lots of tears. She then lost her appetite & started asking for a wee every 10 minutes but not doing one. This has continued with constant potty trips but no wee, grimacing when she does wee & pointing down below constantly & saying it’s ouchy mummy. Her wee is also quite cloudy & smelly but I’m struggling to get her to drink so it’s obviously concentrated.

She woke up last night screaming that it hurt, demanding her night nappy off, screaming for the toilet but then screaming on the toilet .. she then laid in bed wriggling around and holding herself down there for a good hour until the calpol we gave her seemed to kick in.

I took her to the doctor this morning but her urine sample was clear which has baffled me. The doctor was fab & listened to all the symptoms and noticed her wince when she pressed on her tummy & suggested we start antibiotics anyway ..

I’m in two minds as I know unnecessary antibiotics aren’t good but what else could all this pain & the symptoms be?! But then the dip stick showed nothing? Any thoughts?!

Could be an infection that’s below the threshold for the dip test. Is the dr sending a sample to the lab for culture?

Otherwise could it be thrush? That can cause inflammation making it painful to wee and that in itself can then cause the frequency.

Give her the antibiotics the doctor has given you, why on earth wouldn't you when your child is on pain, are you also giving pain killers? If it doesn't improve, go back.

My DD was tested for a UTI this week and dip stick was negative but is sending it off to the lab to check. The dip stick is just and indicator. With those strong symptoms I would treat. UTI in little ones can serious and cause long termkidney scaring.

Any symptoms of thrush? Often a spotty looking rash which will be round the back as well as the front. If there are thrush symptoms I wouldn’t give antibiotics as it could worsen. If no sign of rash I would hesitate to give them ASAP (and I am massively hesitant with them also). Give a probiotic like cytobiotic active at the same time and for a month or so afterwords to help with side effects and reestablish healthy gut bacteria.

WOULDN’T hesitate

Worms?

Also do anything to up her fluid intake, including watery food like melon etc. And let her wee in the bath it’ll be less sore.

No harm doing a treatment for worms either.

My daughter has had similar on two occasions. All the signs of a UTI (including blood in the urine on one occasion) but negative test. However, both times the antibiotics cleared it up. It’s usually only a three day course. Give it to her and also teach her to wipe from front to back (that’s why I think my daughter has been in pain).

Thanks guys, the doctor had a good check for thrush and totally clear down there, no signs of anything, no redness, no itching.. she did notice she had a couple chicken pox scars down there.. we had pox about 5 weeks ago. They really do get them everywhere don’t they, poor thing!

Hadn’t considered worms, doesn’t that make them itch? She’s not itching at all, just saying it hurts.. is there anything else to look out for? Can you see them?!

I’m not worried so much about the antibiotics (we’ve started them), just aware as a lot of my family work in the NHS, of not taking antibiotics when there’s no infection detected. Plus we’ve had this one before & it really upsets her tummy, so didn’t want to cause her unnecessary extra miserableness. I guess I just wondered how reliable the dipstick is and if it’s possible it wouldn’t pick up infection! They are sending the sample to the lab so fingers crossed that shows something I guess!

dipsticks don't pick up every infection. They pick up signs pointing towards infection but it is very possible to have an infection that diesn't show on a dipstick

Could be worms. My dd was much the same, was tearing my hair out at silly o'clock.at night trying to settle her until I saw one of the evil little gits!

Stripped her happy off, tepid flannel to stop the irritation and some Calpol. Dosed with Ovex the next day - sorted