Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs)

• Although urinary tract infections are not sexually transmitted infections, many women will experience urinary tract infections during their lives. A UTI is defined as a lower-urinary tract infection in an otherwise healthy patient with no functional or structural abnormality of the genitourinary tract. UTIs are predominantly infections in women only.
• Urinary tract infections are the most common bacterial infections.
• The prevalence in females increases by approximately 1% per decade of life.
• Approximately 1 in 3 women will have one or more UTIs by age 24.
• 40%-50% of women will have one or more UTIs in their lives. 

Risk factors that do increase your chance of UTIs include:

1. Family or personal history of UTI
2. Estrogen deficiency
3. Any and frequent sexual intercourse
4. New sexual partner
5. Use of unlubricated condoms
6. Use of spermicide
7. Use of diaphragm
8. Recent antibiotic use

Behaviors not associated with UTIs include:

1. Pre- and postcoital voiding patterns (urinating before and after sexual intercourse)
2. Urination frequency
3. Wiping patterns
4. Douching
5. Clothing selection
6. Tampon use and frequency of changing

The following will be helpful if you do experience UTIs:

1. Always finish the full antibiotic course, even if your symptoms are gone.
2. Call if symptoms do not improve within 48 hours of treatment or if you experience high fever, chills, nausea, vomiting, or low back pain.
3. Call for culture results in two to three days.
4. Rest and good diet are important in maintaining resistance to infection.
5. Increase fluids such as water and cranberry juice and decrease fluids containing alcohol and caffeine.
6. Drinking 10 ounces of a 27% concentration of cranberry juice per day helps protect the urinary tract from infection.