UTI question

[SirRaymondClench]

I was due to have an operation on Thursday but got sent home from the hospital because my wee was 'radioactive' with UTI.
I've been sent home with a weeks worth of horribly strong antibiotics.
Now the odd thing is i didn't feel ill until I started the antibiotics and now I feel and look awful!
I have some testing sticks and tested my pee this morning although not FMU. I have been drinking a LOT of water and the test stick shows mild infection but my wee was light straw coloured. I am having a thick moment and wondering if the test shows mild only because my wee is diluted. I can't have this op until the infection is gone but I wanted it doing before xmas.
It's only been 2 days really on the tablets and i feel shocking but because my wee is dilute is that a true reflection of whether the infection is going?
Sorry if this is rambly bollocks, I'm not sleeping.

When you say you feel shocking in what way? Drinking a lot of water will certainly make your urine very dilute and this could affect the dipstick.

I feel nauseous, tired, I've gone spotty, my skin is red and blotchy, kidneys hurt and just generally rough.

Sounds like the infection is giving you the symptoms, maybe you have the wrong type of antibiotics for your uti.

Is it normal for the UTI to start giving symptoms though after antibiotics have started? I'm on Cefalexin 500mg three times a day.

Cefalexin can have some horrible side effects for some but it is very efficient at it's job if you can persevere. Sounds miserable for you though

It's pretty grim tbh.
I didn't realise there could be different strains of UTI. Is Claimed right and maybe that's why I'm feeling worse? They sent my pee off for analysis but I wasn't sure why because I was testing strongly positive for infection and blood.

DD used to get UTIs and they always sent her wee off to be tested. sometimes Cefalexin is the wrong antibiotic and it sounds like you need to get the results from the lab to see which antibiotic will respond to the infection.

Maybe that's it Bunbaker.
It never occurred to me to be honest that there was different strains of UTI. I have an indwelling catheter at the moment which it why I am prone to UTIs and I know it will need to be changed but not sure when.
So fed up with it all and expected to feel better by now and was shocked that it turned out I had a UTI because I didn't feel anything until I actually started these tablets

Ah that's why you've been started on cefalexin I wondered why. You are at a slightly higher risk of getting a UT if you have a catheter in.

Different bacteria can cause UTIs and different bugs have different resistance patterns too. The dipstick has told you you have an infection however it has not identified what is causing it and what it is sensitive to antibiotic wise. This differs around the country, trimethoprim has particularly bad resistance in some parts of the country. All areas have local antibiotic guidelines which differ slightly.

So your sample that got sent to the lab will be cultured on a petri dish to see what grows. It will also be put onto a dish with little discs of antibiotics. If the bugs grow up to the disc it's resistant if it doesn't it's not.

Thank you Penny that explains a lot actually.
I think they said it takes about 5 days to get the results so I should hear after the weekend if these aren't the tablets for me.
I just wish I could start feeling better soon!

How are you feeling SirRaymond? (great name btw!)

Thankyou! I actually stole it shamelessly when it flashed up on the 'who's next' board at the Drs. I felt it should have a title though hence the 'Sir'
I am not great tbh my UTI seems to have cleared but I noticed yesterday evening that my catheter didn't seem to be draining properly.
I phoned the District Nurse today but she didn't seem too fussed and told me to drink loads of water and she would phone me tomorrow.
The thing is the reason I have a cath is because my surgeon cut the nerves to my bladder and I was retaining urine and couldn't feel it so I have no confidence in drinking more than I was before (I drink 2l a day anyway) because I can't feel it. My kidneys are hurting. I think it's blocked

Thankyou! I actually stole it shamelessly when it flashed up on the 'who's next' board at the Drs. I felt it should have a title though hence the 'Sir'
I am not great tbh my UTI seems to have cleared but I noticed yesterday evening that my catheter didn't seem to be draining properly.
I phoned the District Nurse today but she didn't seem too fussed and told me to drink loads of water and she would phone me tomorrow.
The thing is the reason I have a cath is because my surgeon cut the nerves to my bladder and I was retaining urine and couldn't feel it so I have no confidence in drinking more than I was before (I drink 2l a day anyway) because I can't feel it. My kidneys are hurting. I think it's blocked

I've no idea why that posted twice, sorry!

If your catheter is blocked and you have a uti you could get reflux of the infected wee back to the kidneys which could lead to a kidney infection. Sometimes when you have an infection there can be some sediment in your wee made up of dead bugs and white blood cells, so your catheter is more likely to block when you have an infection.
I would suggest you go to a&e as you may well need your catheter changed tonight, a&e can do that for you whereas the out of hours gp probably won't be able to. It may be worth phoning in advance though as a nurse could potentially change the catheter without you having to wait ages to see a doctor.

The District Nurse was going to change it tomorrow, I have a prescription for another cath but I haven't cashed it yet.
I tested my wee this morning and it wasn't showing much by way of infection any more but there was quite a lot of blood. My GP is phoning me in the morning (about a different matter) so I might ask her about it then and if I get no joy will go to A&E. Can't go tonight because I have 3 kids

Oh no, hope you get it sorted quickly.