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RECURRING urine infections may be simply that, but Al Hilal Hospital is urging further investigation if repeated drug treatment does not work.
Two recent case studies illustrate this point.
A 47-year-old Filipina lady was referred by her gynaecologist with a suspected bladder tumour. The patient had complained of worsening lower abdominal and pelvic pain accompanied by urinary urgency/frequency for eight months. Treatment of four separate culture proven E. coli urinary tract infections with appropriate antibiotics failed to relieve the symptoms. An ultrasound scan was carried out which showed a bladder swelling with calcification.
A 50-year-old Indian had been treated for urinary tract symptoms and recurrent infections for four to five years before a scan picked up swellings in the urinary tract allowing the patient to be sent for further evaluation.
The hospital performed an intravenous pyelogram (IVP) - when an injection of X-ray dye is given to a patient via a needle and is excreted from the bloodstream via the kidneys, its visibility on X-ray allowing a comprehensive view of the functioning of the renal system.
Once again problems were revealed and treated.
A third patient had been treated with antibiotics by a gynaecologist and her GP for 10 years without improvement.
An X-ray revealed calcification in the urinary tract and cytoscopy - where a doctor looks into the bladder with a special telescope showed a tumour like mass in one of the tubes.
These patients demonstrate the need for further investigation in the case of persistent urinary infections with the outcomes frequently positive and treatment relatively simple and readily available at Al Hilal Hospital in Muharraq which is a 50-bed unit with various specialities including urinary medicine.
