HealthInfo Canterbury
Urine infections (cystitis)
Pokenga mimi
A urine infection is often referred to as a urinary tract infection (UTI).
The infection is caused by bacteria (germs) entering your urinary system through your urethra (the tube that you pass urine (wee) through). E. coli, which is a bacteria that lives in your bowel, is commonly the cause of the infection.
Sometimes the bacteria that cause a UTI can travel and infect other parts of your urinary system. An infection of your kidneys is called pyelonephritis. An infection of your bladder is cystitis, and an infection of your urethra is urethritis.
There are several things that increase your risk of getting a UTI:
- being female – women are particularly at risk due to their urethra being shorter, meaning there's less distance for germs to travel
- being older
- being pregnant
- having abnormal structures in your urinary tract
- having an obstruction in your urinary system such as a kidney stone or an enlarged prostate
- having a urinary catheter
- having diabetes
- sexual intercourse.
Symptoms of a urine infection
Sometimes you won't have any symptoms and sometimes your symptoms can be mild. But you may experience:
- pain, stinging or a burning feeling when weeing (urinating)
- needing to urinate frequently
- wee that smells bad or looks cloudy or reddish
- pain or tenderness in your tummy.
Urine infections can make frail older people very unwell. Often the only symptoms are being more muddled, sleepier, incontinent, off food or just generally unwell. Confusion and sleepiness can put older people at risk of falls.
Important
Seek urgent medical attention if you also have a fever, back pain or nausea and vomiting as you may have a more serious kidney infection.
Diagnosing a UTI
To diagnose a UTI, your general practice team will examine you and ask you questions about your general health.
You may need to collect some wee in a container for a urine test.
Sometimes your general practice team will arrange a blood test to check for signs of infection and to see how well your kidneys are working.
If you're male, your general practice team may recommend tests to check your bladder, prostate or kidneys. This is more likely if you're under 50 or if you have an infection more than twice within a few months.
Treating a UTI
A UTI is usually treated quite easily with a short course of antibiotics. Make sure you finish all the antibiotics, even if you're feeling better.
If you are a woman aged 16 to 65, you aren't pregnant and you don't have any other complicating factors, you can buy an antibiotic from some pharmacies without a prescription from a doctor.
You can take pain relief to dull the pain and lower your temperature. You should also drink plenty of fluids.
If you keep getting UTIs (recurrent UTI ) your doctor may give you a low dose antibiotic to take every day for a few months.
If your urine test doesn't find any bacteria, you may have another cause for your symptoms such painful bladder syndrome or a sexually transmitted infection (STI).
Preventing a UTI
There are several things you can do to help prevent UTIs:
- drink plenty of fluid
- for women, wee after having sex
- for women, wipe from front to back after passing wee or a bowel motion.
There is no good evidence that cranberry juice or supplements can prevent UTIs.
HealthInfo recommends the following pages
- Patient.info (includes videos):
- Cystitis in women and Urine infection in men
Information about the symptoms and treatment of urine infections.
- Recurrent cystitis in women
More information about recurrent UTIs.
- Cystitis in women and Urine infection in men
Written by HealthInfo clinical advisers. Last reviewed April 2023.
SourcesReview key: HIURS-53047
