UTI not fully clearing?

[buzzheath]

Hi all. I had a uti a few weeks ago. Was treated with 3 days nitrofurantin...this did help. But things didn't seem back to normal so then had a 7 day course of amoxicillin. Again, it helped, but within a few days of stopping, things felt weird again. Not full on UTI, but just a weird awareness of my urethra?! It's now been almost 2 weeks and I still don't feel quite right. Guess I'll call the GP again...been reading scary stuff about embedded UTIs and I really hope it isn't that...

Any advice? At my wits end and so miserable.

Ps if you take immunosuppressants to treat your other condition I'd say it's especially important to take the antibios to get this sorted asap

Cefalexin was my first antibiotic and it very quickly made my symptoms improve a lot. I think at first I felt worse for a few days but once I'd settled on it the relief was immense. Unfortunately what I'm finding is that if I stop the drugs my symptoms come back and after a couple of years they stop working and I have to swap meds. But like I said, I'd been ill for 12 years by the time I went to the clinic so I think I'm an extreme case

Hi @buzzheath, I'm also a fellow patient of the Harley Street Clinic!

I was in excruciating pain for about 5 months before seeing Prof ML, and not to sound dramatic but I feel like him and his clinic have saved my life!

I too started with an infection where after multiple short rounds of antibiotics wouldn't go away and the NHS just kept telling me my cultures were clear and to just 'drink more water'.

My advice would be to take the cefalexin and ease into the hiprex (after 6 years I still only take one a day, with no vit c). And still keep up with the manoose.

Don't let this infection take hold.

@DameKatyDenisesClagnuts There is zero chance I would ever take Hiprex again, I can't describe how severe the pain was, even my urologist agreed that I shouldn't take it.

@buzzheath which dr did you see?
I hope your symptoms reduce really soon.

@MissRabbit00 nice to meet you! OK, i took a dose of hiprex earlier and it didn't seem to give be any stinging. Will start cephalexin tomorrow. Bit worried because the doctor said to "stop cephalexin if you get any diarrhea at all". Not sure what this means really because my stomach is quite messed up generally from previous antibiotics!

@dahliaaa I saw the prof's son. He was nice enough, relaxed, efficient, but I wouldn't rule out seeing any of the other doctors there either!

@MissRabbit00 how are you now? So glad the clinic had a positive impact. Are you still on antiBs?

a test that is sent of by gp isn’t testing for white blood cells. They do that by dip stick right in front of you. A sample sent away to a lab grows whatever the bacteria is in urine to see what bacteria it is and therefore what antibiotic would be most effective. Most utis are caused by e.coli but some strains are resistant to certain antibiotics and if you have something that isn’t e. Coli that might need a different antibiotic. However the threshold for how much bacteria has to show up to count as a “positive” test has to be high enough for them to be sure it’s not just background bacteria (the idea that urine is normally sterile is a myth). So it’s totally possible to have an infection but get a negative result on gps test. It just means you didn’t have tonnes of bacteria cells in your urine at the time!

I should have said earlier but another time is you can buy those same dipsticks from Amazon and use them at home. They don’t last more than a few months but they are good for you to monitor whether an infection is coming back or retreating. They show up white blood cells, blood, and nitro somethings that I remember indicating infection.

however it sounds like your in good hands op. Fingers crossed you’ll feel better soon!

@buzzheath thank you

Get taking some probiotics (you can get tablet ones off amazon etc) they should hopefully help your stomach and ward off any thrush that many/strong antibiotics can cause.

I'm in a much better place now. I was on cefalexin for years but am off it now and just take hiprex. I still have the odd flare up and have had to learn a lot about my body (triggers etc) but I feel like its under control.

I'm trying D Mannose but it doesn't seem to work. I might try upping the dose. Currently taking one and a half tablets a day.

I suffer with utis in bouts and the first round out anti biotics for 3 days is never enough for me! I ended up on anti biotics for 4 weeks as it wasn’t clearing but finally did! It sounds by what you’ve described it’s lurking and so you should call your gp again. Also abstaining from sex when having a uti recommended ( though I have trouble following this and only don’t when I’m in agony ). By DP thoughtful and will leave me alone but it’s me 😈

It amazes me that anyone could have sex with a UTI, makes me realise that some infections must be quite mild. The pain I get with an infection is so severe, sex would be quite literally impossible.

How are you getting on with the Cefalexin @buzzheath , any improvement yet?

@mrsjg 2000mg per day is the recommended prophylactic dose for D-Mannose, you'll need to take more during an active infection. Dose recommendations vary (not much research has been done) so do a bit of reading and see what you think.

@HealthyHarriet Yes to thrush! I always make sure I've got some Flucanozole in just in case, sometimes it needs more than one dose to fully clear it up too.

Do you have a url for that D-Mannose? I can't read the image text.

@SwordBilledHummingbird I've had almost 2 full days of the cefalexin now. I think things are a little better, but not sure if that's even because of the antibiotics?

I'm also getting a weird 'spasming' twinge sensation down there every now and then....not while urinating, and not sure if it's from urethra or what! But hoping things will go in the right direction.

@MissRabbit00 Sorry if TMI, but did you get diarrhea at any point while on cefalexin?

The doctor told if I got diarrhea while on it, then to stop immediately (due to C-diff risk) and he'd prescribe a different antibiotic. Bit unsure what to do, as I do generally get diarrhea on antibiotics, but it often just resolves...

@MissRabbit00 The risk for C Diff seems low for cefalexin, so I thought his advice seemed a bit overkill, but I'll probably abide by what he said.

Guess I'll email him. Grrrrr. So frustrating.

Yes. I’m reading through the thread and thinking the same. It sounds like me a few years ago. Endless antibiotics but still that odd urethral feeling. Just all got worse and worse. Ask your GP for Ovestin cream. That replaces the lost estrogen and stops the symptoms x

@DaBlackCatsAreDaBestCats Not sure the GP would give me ovestin cream - I'm 32!

Oh I see. Not the menopause then x

Has anyone had strange, electric shock-like sensations in their urethra while healing? :/

@DaBlackCatsAreDaBestCats I started vagifem about 3 months ago but still struggling with uti symptoms unfortunately. I'm hoping it does eventually kick in to help that particular thing eventually.

Hi @dahliaaa Try swapping to Ovestin. Worked for me within a few days. It’s been like a miracle x

@buzzheath Yes, and randomly every now and then. It's nerve related and is a Painful Bladder Syndrome thing (for me anyway).

Thanks for info @DaBlackCatsAreDaBestCats