A Urinary Tract Infections (UTI) is the result of a bacterial infection affecting part of the urinary tract causing either a bladder infection (cystitis), kidney infection (pyelonephritis), urethral infection (urethritis), or in men, the prostate (prostatitis).
The most typical symptoms of a urinary tract infection are pain or burning passing urine, frequent urination, abdominal, loin or lower back discomfort, and strong-smelling urine. Other symptoms of a urinary tract infection may include blood in the urine, fever or chills.
Urinary tract infections can usually be treated very effectively by the GP. Patients who develop recurrent UTI’s may require further evaluation to look for a possible underlying cause and to discuss longer-term management plans and lifestyle measures to reduce the risk of further infections in the future. This may involve scans of the kidneys and bladder and an endoscopic bladder examination (cystoscopy).