Diabetics & Urinary Tract Infections

Urinary tract infections are bacterial infections that affect your urethra, bladder, or the tubes that connect your bladder and your kidneys, known as ureters. While anyone can develop a urinary tract infection, the infections are more common in certain groups of people, including diabetics.

Cause

The presence of excess blood sugar in your body due to diabetes affects your immune system, making your body less able to fight off bacteria. This makes you more susceptible to infections like urinary tract infections.

Symptoms

Symptoms of a urinary tract infection in diabetics include painful urination, an intense or frequent urge to urinate, back or lower abdominal pain, cloudy or dark urine, blood in your urine, and fever or chills.

Treatment

Doctors prescribe antibiotic medications like amoxicillin, nitrofurantoin, ciprofloxacin, and sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim to treat urinary tract infections in diabetics.

Time Frame

Normally, urinary tract infections take only a few days to clear up with the use of antibiotics. However, if you have diabetes, it will likely take your body longer to fight the infection.

Prevention

One way to prevent urinary tract infections is to control your blood sugar levels through the use of insulin or oral medications, a proper diet, and regular exercise, reports the American Diabetes Association. Drinking water, emptying your bladder after sexual intercourse, and avoiding irritating creams, sprays, and douches also help prevent urinary tract infections.