YOUNG-WOMEN Messages for October, 2002: Re: peated UTIs

Re: peated UTIs

From: William McIntosh, MD (anonymous@obgyn.net)
Tue, 29 Oct 2002 15:41:02 -0600 (CST)

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Reply: Laney: "Re: peated UTIs"

At Tue, 29 Oct 2002, Laney wrote: >
>Forgive me for asking a naive question, but I don't understand how a
>person can get repeated UTIs. I'm 20yrs old and have had several
>infections in the last few years, around 4-6 in total. Each time the
>urine test comes back as positive for e.coli and the infection has
>cleared up quickly with antibiotics. My question is, how can there be
>repeated infections in the same area again and again? Doesn't your body
>respond by creating antibodies? I've always been thought that you
>couldn't get the same infection twice -- i.e., colds are always caused
>by a different virus/infection. I was a little too embarrassed to bring
>it up in my microbio class.
>
>Thanks in advance!

Some infections do cause such an antibody response, colds being a good example. However, that applies more to viral infections than to bacterial infections, and has no role in infections by our own opportunistic native flora. These are the large number of different bacteria, fungi and so on that live on our bodies quite happily all the time, and if they get the chance to stick it to us, well so much the better. E coli are our most common boarder, living by the hundreds of millions in our GI tract. It is by a large margin the most common cause of UTIs in women due to the close proximity of the anus to the vagina and urethra. Women are particularly prone to UTIs due to this proximity and the short urethra (tube from the outside to the bladder), which makes the trip for the bacteria quite short. In addition, sexual activity can act to "push" the bacteria along the urethra resulting in "honeymoon cystitis", UTIs cause by sex. This is why your mother taught you to wipe front to back, and your gyn wants you to get up after sex and void.

-- William D. McIntosh, MD, FACOG

This is for educational purposes only, and is not a substitute for consultation and examination by a licensed medical professional.

Next message: Fabio Fiorino, M.D.: "Re: Effectiveness of the pill"
Previous message: Fabio Fiorino, M.D.: "Re: Bacterial Infections with Thongs"
In reply to: Laney: "Repeated UTIs"
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Reply: Laney: "Re: peated UTIs"

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