Daughter Just Diagonsed with UTI Looking for Tips to Get Her Better Faster

My daughter was diagnosed with kidney reflux as an infant and had multiple uti infections. She had a few hospital stays for dehydration and the tests they give are horrible so I feel for you as it was painful for us to watch. She outgrew it but had to take antibiotics for a year. You may want to ask you dr. about this. It helped her with keeping infections at bay. Good luck!

Hi!
I had recurring UTIs when I was pregnant and know how uncomfortable they are! My only suggestion is to look at the type of cranberry juice you are using. I used the organic juice that has no sugar and it worked much better. As for the taste--I mixed a little white grape juice with it so I could stand it! I don't know how your daughter will react, but it might be worth a shot!
Good Luck!
L.

They also make cranberry pills, which is a higher dosage than what you would get out of just juice which often has only 10% pure juice and a lot of sugar. The acidity in the cranberry helps to fight off the infection more naturally.

Hope everyone's tips/suggestions help.

L.

Hi, my daughter had kidney refulx diagnosed at 10 months old after a UTI. She had an ultrasound and follow-up VCUG and DMSA scans(both are tests that inject dye inot her to check the function of her kidneys and bladder) She followed up every year with a scan and had her urine checked every 3 months to make sure there was no infection. She has never had another one since. Her nephrologist suggested yogurt(it contains the "normal" bacteria she needs to fight infections), lots of water and cranberry, no baths with soap(it kills off the good bacteria-keep baths short, and no bubble baths, and get her out once she is done washing), and frequent bathroom trips. Also, try to avoid her ever getting constipated(don't know if she has a problem with that) because she will tend to not empty out her bladder all the way if she is. Teach her good wiping, and if she frequents the beach and pools-don't let her sit too long in a wet suit. If she has the testing done, the ultra sound is non-invasive, but the other two are a little scary for the kids. The VCUG(voiding cysto urethrogram) involves her to have a catheter and the DMSA, she will need a IV to inject dye. If she does have any kind of reflux, she probably will be precribed an propholatic antibiotic to take daily. Hopefully, it was just a one time thing for her!! If she is really uncomfortable or not feeling back to herself, try some tylenol or motrin, us ladies know how uncomfortable UTI's are, and she probably will not want to go to the bathroom if she doen't feel good. Also, the antibiotics may upset her stomach(as will UTI's), so if she is not hungry, just push lots of popsicles(make your own with cranberry juice) and sherbert, ice cream-anything liquid she likes that will flush the infection out. Hope some of this helps and good luck-I hope she feels better!

I am sorry to hear that, I can only imagine how you feel. I am not sure in children but I know that I had one at one time and along with the medicine, I had to drink lots of water and or cranberry juice. I would suggest tons more water while your daughter is taking the medication. usually problems occur when there is a lack of water and if your daughter loves juice like mine does, then it may be hard to get her to drink water. But try that and see if that doesn't improve the situation for her. Also do as much research as possible on the various tests that they require. Go to google and type in the names of the tests and see what is recommended. I've learned the hard way not to just take the word of the doctor, they might mean well but some stuff is unnecessary and you don't want to put your child through any unnecessary pain or trauma. Good luck and please keep us posted.....

Hi E.,

My daughter had a UTI when she was 6 months old!! She spiked a really high fever and I went into a febrile seizure (I almost had one too!) and I took her to the ER. Turned out to be a UTI, after they did a spinal tap and several other tests to rule out other dangerous high fever causers. What an ordeal. She ended up spending 3 or 4 days there because they were afraid of the fever/seizure thing.

She also had an ultrasound (on the outside of her) to look at the shape of her kidneys, and I was urged to have another test called a voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG), which was a bigger deal. She had to go to Children's Hospital for it, and have a catheter put up her urethra. They put a dye in and watch the flow, checking for obstructions in the urethra and bladder that could be collecting bacteria. Ugh. Horrible to be there for; they needed me to hold her down. But the concern was that an unknown obstruction is deadly, there are very few symptoms that warn ahead of time.

Water and cranberry juice were never recommended. I think that might be more of an adult thing, but I'm not sure.

My daugher has never had another one, nor has she had as high a fever or a seizure. Whew. I hope your daughters is all cleared up soon.

Best,

S., mom to 2 1/2 year old Loretta, in Chicago

E.,
Oh my god, I went through the same thing with my now 4 1/2 year old daughter last year. Please keep an open mind and try not to panic like I did. I pray that your doctors and lab tests are on target. I know your situation may be different but my daughter had never had a UTI and I got so caught up in how they made it sound how serious it was that I ended up taking her to a specialist at Children's Memorial which cost me over $800! It began when I took her to urgent care and they said she had a serious infection and prescribed antibiotics. The problem with a young child having a UTI is that it is nearly impossible to get a clean catch urine sample. The nightmare came when I went to my reg ped for a follow up. The doctor and hospital tech handed me a 4 oz cup with a wipe and sent me to the bathroom with my then 3 year old. It is ridiculous. The second thing the specialist at CM told me was that the lab tests the hosptial lab ran on the urine check were incomplete and very easy to contaminate, they didn't have a full picture of what the bacteria count were, etc... they simply showed there was an infection, you have to insist that they run a complete culture of the urine. I ended up taking my daughter to the ER after she had been treated because the follow up lab results showed some crazy bacteria and my pediatrician called me to say that she needed a shot immediately. After this trip to the ER to further cement the fear of doctors in my otherwise healthy 3 year old, her lab tests again showed some fecal bacteria (clean catch problem) and then my doctor ordered a catheter test which was so devastating to my then 3 1/2 year old that I swore I would not have anything further done until I consulted a specialist. The final straw was when the pediatrician wanted my daughter to have a VCUG (cystogram) and an ultrasound - all for one UTI, the first and only she has had since. My daughter consequently was better within two days of taking the antibiotic. Come to find out later, that there is no way in hell she could have had the type of bacteria that showed up - another flaw in the lab results due to the problem with getting a clean catch and human error. The Pediatric Urology Specialist at Children's Memorial took a abdomen x-ray of my daughter because she told me that the number one cause of a UTI in a young girl is constipation and that at the age of 3 and 4 there is also an issue about cleaning themselves properly after using the bathroom. The x-ray did show up with some constipation and the doctor told me to get her some strong liquid laxatives - Endicott or something like that. She also told me that even if a child eats a lot of veggies and grains they could still be constipated, plenty of water helps, and grape juice is just as effective as cranberry to help prevent future infections, plus it tastes better. I hope everything is o.k. with your daughter. If they want to make sure she is o.k. my advice would be to try the least invasive test (ultrasound) first because to this day my daughter is traumatized from the catheter and the whole doctor thing period. Good luck.

Hi E.,

I am a single mom in Oak Park, IL and although I have no UTI experience. I do know of a product called Cranbarrier by Melaleuca, Inc. Melaleuca is a wholesale shopping club I have been a member of for almost 4 years now. You do have to be referred by a member in order to shop with Melaleuca and purchase the cranbarrier and I would be happy to refer you. Melaleuca has over 350 different nature based products, everything from over-the-counter type medications to cleaning and laundry products to bath and body products to skin care and cosmetics. The are safer, work better and are more economical than anything I was previously using.

Here's a story from one of my fellow Melaleuca shoppers:

My daughter had 2 consecutive bladder infections when she was 4 years old. We immediately put her on one CranBarrier tablet everyday. It's chewable and she loves it and she has not had a bladder infection since then!!! (which has now been over a year ago!)

Then, during my last pregnancy, I had a bladder infection. I immediately started on 2 CranBarriers a day. I was thrilled that I did not get a repeat infection for the rest of the pregnancy.

Now, for me and my two daughters (ages 5 and almost 3) CranBarrier is one of our daily supplements. I take two and they each take one. Kathleen Echevarria

Please feel free to contact me:

J. Penfield
www.juliepenfield.com
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Hi E.,
My daughter, Trisha, now 3, had a UTI last year. We were in the middle of potty training her and it set us back alot. We did go through the tests and she didn't like them. It is very traumatic but with alot of love and cuddling she'll be just fine. Be sure to plan something after the test that is a treat for her for being such a big girl. It will also help to take her mind off of it. Also, take some support for yourself. My mother-in-law came with us and she helped alot. She could help hold her down while I reassured her that everything was okay and wouldn't take much longer. Sorry can't help with getting through it faster because Trisha took the meds and was fine. Take care of yourself and her. Lots of love is the key. G. from Kenosha

My daughter who is 3.5, was diagnosed with two UTIs while she was potty training. At her last one, which was about 6 months ago, the doctor wanted to order these test. Now, my daughter had to be restrained just to try to put in a catheter for her first UTI, and even that wasn't successful. I knew that she would have to be sedated, for any test involving a catheter, and none of us were ready for it. The doctor and I discussed, and decided that it would be best just to put her on the prophylactic antibiotics for a year to see what happened. She hasn't had a UTI since(crossing fingers). Hopefully this will be a one time thing for your daughter, and she won't have any damage. The best thing I can suggest is lots of water and a little fruit juice daily to make sure she doesn't get constipated(I believe that was the root of my daughter's problems while she was potty training). Someone else mentioned yogurt, and that seems to help us here as well.

Good luck!

They sell cranberry pills which always work for me but for little ones who won't swallow pills you need to buy PURE cranberry juice, the sugar and junk in products like juicy juice or ocean spray just feed the bacterias. You can buy pure at whole foods or sometimes jewel carries it. You can mix it with water to tone down the taste. Hope she is feeling better soon! I used to have them a few times a year now I take a cranberry pill a few times a week and haven't had one in over a year. My 9yro had one when she was 5 and hasn't had one since.