Know Your Limits
Self-Medication or Doctor's Visit?
Only in uncomplicated cases is cystitis a candidate for self-medication. This means you should not belong to any risk groups, and the infection must not have spread to your kidneys, remaining confined to the lower urinary tract.
Risk groups where a UTI is always considered complicated:
- Children and men
- During pregnancy
- Diabetes mellitus
- Immunosuppression
- Kidney stones (Urolithiasis)
- Functional or anatomical urinary tract disorders, voiding dysfunctions
- Bladder catheters
- Previous urinary tract surgery
- Kidney dysfunction
Signs indicating a complicated course:
- General feeling of illness
- Pain in the kidney area
- Fever, chills
- Bloody urine
- No improvement in symptoms after 3-5 days
- Chronic and recurrent UTIs
Therefore, self-medication is only an option for women without risk factors in the case of an uncomplicated cystitis (classic UTI). The spontaneous recovery rate here is 30 to 50 percent within a week.
About 2% of UTIs are, by definition, complicated infections and require medical treatment.
Tips for Visiting the Doctor
If you have symptoms of a urinary tract infection, please clarify these questions:
- Do I belong to a risk group?
- Are there symptoms or pre-existing conditions that suggest a complicated course?
- Have the symptoms lasted more than 3 to 5 days?
If you can answer any question with YES, then go to the doctor's.
Medical History
It is best to discuss the answers to the above questions during your appointment (unless your doctor doesn't ask about them anyway).
If a straightforward UTI is diagnosed, it is often treated empirically, for example, with a common antibiotic for urinary tract infections.
Urine Culture
Especially for recurrent and all complicated UTIs, a urine culture + sensitivity test should be conducted.
This is the only way to find out which pathogen you have and which antibiotic it is sensitive (and not resistant) to.
Additional diagnostic methods include, for example, ultrasound examination and blood tests.
My Tip if you tend to recurrent urinary tract infections: Ask your trusted doctor for an antibiotic for emergencies to take home. It can be a welcome relief on a trip or over weekends/holidays, or simply take away the fear!
Personal Words
Even as a child I struggled with UTIs. After a few years' break, the infections unfortunately returned through sexual activity. At first, I was really naive. I didn't know much about antibiotic resistance, herbal remedies, urine test strips, etc. One antibiotic followed another... without making a lasting difference to my situation.
A full 20 years later, I know how my bladder works and what options I have before visiting my GP. Consulting a urologist was also extremely helpful for me.
So it is better to not suffer for years, take antibiotics, and wonder, but rather consult a specialist doctor who can address you and your issue.
Over time, you will also develop a sixth sense for it. You will notice when the infection is no longer manageable with home remedies. A urinary tract infection can spread to the kidneys, and a kidney infection is truly no fun.
For a UTI during pregnancy, please also not hesitate to see a doctor, as it can, for example, lead to premature birth and needs to be treated. Self-treatment was not an option for me during my pregnancy. Note: Not every antibiotic is suitable for treatment during pregnancy.