You left your class mid-lecture to run to the bathroom, but once you got there, you couldn't go. You have mysterious back pains and you haven't done heavy lifting. When you finally urinate, it is only a small amount and you experience painful burning sensations.
Familiar with these symptoms? If so, you might have a urinary tract infection. No need to freak -- you aren't alone. UTIs are one of the most common reasons for a Student Health visit and can be cured easily with antibiotics. A UTI might seem like only a minor irritation, but untreated, it has the potential to create a major problem for your kidneys. Luckily, there are methods to prevent UTIs and a plethora of remedies to reduce the annoyance factor if you happen to come down with one.
Unlike the target audience of overdramatic prostate drug commercials, the most common group of people affected by UTIs are women. Kristin Bell, assistant director of general medicine at Student Health, explained the gender distribution of UTIs.
"They are fairly common in young women," she said. "Anatomy differences cause more of the bacteria on skin to be introduced into the urinary tract."
Although anatomy already puts women at a higher risk for UTIs, diarrhea, sexual intercourse and wiping from "back to front" after urinating don't help, a Student Health pamphlet on UTIs states. These practices can cause bacteria to enter the urethra easily and cause infection, the pamphlet states, while in men, a longer urethra makes it more difficult for these bacteria to enter. UTIs in men are often caused by a preexisting medical condition. Men and women both might want to look out for pain or burning during urination, the pamphlet states, as well as a frequent urge to go to the bathroom, urination in small amounts, back pain, fever or nausea.
Different people have different susceptibility to UTIs.
"Diabetics are more predisposed because they have more sugar in their urine, and that's a good culture medium," gynecologist Robert Tatum explained. "Some people may be more predisposed because of a problem that has to do with a layer of their bladder [known as the] glycosaminoglycan layer."
When the glycosaminoglycan layer is disrupted, one of the primary barriers to the bladder breaks down, making a UTI more likely to occur.
Increased sexual activity increases your chances of catching a UTI, even though you can still develop one in the absence of sexual activity.
"With sexual activity there is more 'trauma' and there is more abrasion" to the tissue, Tatum explained. "With the increased trauma and bacterial exposure there is a higher chance of getting a UTI."
Tatum also acknowledged that taking birth control pills does not affect one's chances of developing a UTI.
According to Tatum, having more sexual partners does not increase one's chances of developing a UTI, but sexual activity in general and certain sexual practices increase the risk factors.
"Obviously there are people who have anal sex and vaginal sex in the same episode, and that's not cool because you're getting the wrong bacteria in the wrong place," Tatum said. "It is good [for sexually active people to] empty their bladder before and after intercourse and drink fluids."
Keeping an empty bladder, he further explained, keeps a smaller urine pool and makes it more difficult for bacteria to grow.
In addition to sexual practices, douching can encourage infections to invade a woman's urinary tract.
"Women sometimes do it too much," Tatum said. Douching can "change the normal balance of the vagina and that changes the acid-base and bacterial balance."
Women can give their urinary tract a break by douching only in moderation.
Although UTIs don't carry the same weighty stigma of STIs, they still are not something to be taken lightly. If you think you have one, it is important to see a doctor right away.
"By waiting, you can develop a worse infection -- an infection of the kidneys," Bell said. "This is also treatable, but it has harsher symptoms and takes longer to resolve." While it takes three to five days to clear infections of the bladder or urinary tract, it can take up to seven to 14 days to fend off a kidney infection.
One holistic specialist said she agrees with medical professionals on the importance of seeking prompt medical attention when UTI symptoms are present.
"I wouldn't let it go for more than three days," said Susan Dunlap, nutrition information specialist at Rebecca's Natural Food store in Barracks Road Shopping Center.
Once antibiotics have been prescribed, she explained, there are several natural remedies you can use to get your system back on track.
Over the years, natural methods for dispelling UTIs have shifted from drinking cranberry juice to taking cranberry supplements, Dunlap said. Cranberry juice might be hard to swallow without sugar added, but its addition gives bacteria something on which to feed, she noted; on the other hand, cranberry (and less commonly, blueberry) supplements give UTI sufferers a high concentration of a substance that prevents bacteria from adhering to the walls of the urethra.
Natural remedies go a step further than just eliminating the "bad bacteria;" Dunlap emphasized the importance of replenishing "good bacteria" after taking antibiotics. "Probiotics are food supplements that come from fermented foods like yogurt," Dunlap said. "If you don't replenish the good bacteria, the bad bacteria and yeast can multiply, and you can get a yeast infection."
In addition to antibiotics and natural products, you can ease discomfort by taking pain relievers and applying a heating pad to your lower back. You can further flush out your system by drinking lots of liquids (preferably, caffeine- and alcohol-free). Finally, you should abstain from sex until your infection clears. UTIs happen all the time, but you can take action to make sure they exit your body quickly and smoothly.
--Sarah Peeden contributed to this article.
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