Anyone Have Experience with Their Baby Having a Urinary Tract Infection?

We went through this with both my sons. At that age there is no way that they can get a clean catch without the catheter. It really isn't all that painful for them. Once it's in they can't feel it. Now, they may scream because they don't know what's going on or they don't like being held down, but the pain factor is definitely low.

You need to go ahead and do this to rule out UTI. If you let it go too long it can develop into something more serious

Does he seem to be in pain when he urinates? That would be a tell-tale sign. You can give him unsweetened cranberry juice diluted or cranberry pills - should be able to find chewables at the health food store. If it is a UTI, that should clear it up naturally...also as much water as you can get in him and NO sugar whatsoever because that will feed the infection. Hope this helps!

Just fyi for the future...they don't have to do a catheter. There is a "bag" they can put over that area of baby boys and girls.....they clean the area, place the bag on....think of a ziploc with a band-aid like tape all around the edge......then put on the diaper and wait for the baby to pee. Then they analyze the pee in the bag....similar to when you pee in a cup.

My pediatrician routinely does this for all baby's/toddlers in diapers who are suspected of a UTI and it is a non-emergency.

I am sorry it was a bad experience for you!

Catheter is not bad. I have never had it done when when I had babies.But my daughter had a kidney that did not grow and she could not empty right. So for 7 years she self cathetered. She washed her hands and did it herself. She was about 2 almost three and I tried to do it after seeing the film they showed how. She said mommy let me and she did it. She did it ever since. We would boil them after use. The only thing that some nurses insisted on doing when she was in the hospital for tests every year. The stuff they used to sterilized burned her. Some insisted on using it and when we told them it hurt they just used something else. In the film we watched a kid put a huge long tub in and it went in and in looked aweful but it is flexible and curls. I would rather know and get it solved. Urinary tracts are painful. I ended up in the hospital a few years ago with one. I also had one that my back was really in pain and I could hardly walk. Meds helped but the last time ony intervien feeding helped. G. W

I grew up with horrid UTIs and from personal experience, I STRONGLY urge you to get it checked out. It can really damage kidneys (I have only one working kidney as a result of reflux.). Since reflux can be passed down, I have had both my girls checked and they put them 'under' with 'twilight' so they were coherent but did not remember anything. We went to a lab in Plano for it as reccomended by our ped. urolgoist Linda Baker. I would be very concerened if he has a temp as this means the UTI may have gone to the kidney (and this is really painful, I know!).
Feel free to email me if you have any questions or anything. From my childhood experiences, I know a lot about UTIs.
Hugs!!

This happened with my daughter when she was about the same age. She had to have a catheter twice. Once to confirm she had a UTI and once to re-check after taking antibiotics to make sure it was gone. I'm not sure why one of the other Moms would say that having a catheter put up your uretha is not painful, because it is...whether for an adult or a child. However, you do need to know if he does have a UTI, so it may be the only way to get a clean/pure sample of urine. If he has a fever and seems to be in pain when urinating and holding his private area a bunch, then he probably does have a UTI.

It is difficult to watch them put a catheter in your child. We just did a lot of praying and when it came time for the catheter, I was singing with my daughter. She did cry as she sang, bless her heart! Even more heart-wrenching was that IF it is a UTI, today's Pediatricians are taught to address the UTI aggressively. Not only with antibiotics to get rid of the infection, but also with addt'l testing at the hospital to rule out a more serious internal problem. We felt extreme PRESSURE to have the DYE-TEST done on our daughter at the hospital. That is where they put dye in your child's urinary tract with a catheter and then slowly take x-rays as they urinate it back out. It is painful and scary for a child and when they are under 2 years old they will not give them a sedative, etc. We felt so much pressure to do this, even though our daughter ONLY had this ONE UTI, that we changed Pediatricians. We ended up going to the hospital for a non-invasive procedure, a sonogram, to check for any obstructions, but decided against the invasive procedure after much prayer, discussion and counsel.

Lastly, given infections I had as a child as a result of "bubble baths" as well as this one UTI with my daughter, we have never let her take baths with soap in the water. I would wash her down with soap and water as she sat in the tub (no standing water in tub), but with running water...not sitting water. Then, I'd rinse the tub out and let her sit in standing "clean" water to play at the end of bath time with her bath toys. Now that she is 4 years old she only takes abbreviated showers. A year ago, we had added the removable shower sprayer that we use in the bathtub. So, she in effect has taken showers for the past year. Sometimes she still wants to play in the tub, so again, I do her hair and bathe her with the detachable shower head first (as she stands or sits), then, I fill up the tub with ONLY clean water for playtime.

Our daughter has NEVER had another UTI since that one time. We hope she never will again. We learned a lot about UTIs, we also learned a lot about taking in all the advice and counsel possible before making serious decisions about our daughter's medical care and help. We are thankful that we didn't put her through the invasive testing at the hospital, though we would have, IF she had had 1 or 2 more UTIs within the next year or so. It would have remained difficult, but we would then have felt it warranted to prevent further damage. And, she would have been old enough to have a sedative then too.

I provide ALL this lengthy info to hopefully help you in making a decision that you will feel comfortable with for your son. I know it is difficult. I pray that you will have the right input/counsel and instinct to feel at peace as you move forward in his care. Many Blessings - L.

My daughter was born with VUR (vesicoureteral reflux). That basically means that the tubes that connect the kidneys to the bladder were not completely formed yet so that the urine in the bladder would come back up the tubes a bit causing infections. She had a mild case that we controlled with constant antiobiotic therapy. She has outgrown the problem now (thank goodness).

I also have a friend who's son was diagnosed with kidney stones at the age of 2. He had his first catheterization at that time and had several more after that.

Now, I tell you all this to tell you from my experience and that of my friend's .... that it's not so bad to have urinary catheterization done. It will likely be a bit uncomfortable for him, but it will be over within a minute, and you will have peace of mind by ruling out a potential infection.

Hope this helps you out. Take care and best wishes.

Hi T.:

My name is J. , I'm hispanic and I have a 2 year daughter and around six months ago she had a urinary infection, unfortunally we have to do the catheter and it was really painfull, but tha't the only way onless your son is potty trainning you can give them a urine sample, but you have to do it they want more test more painful or the other option we have to take her every three months and give them the urine sample.My suggestion is buy one of those little potty and put a little glass in there so your son get use to it once he's get it it would be more easy for you to the the potty at the doctor's office and give them the sample there. If you have mote question you can call me at 214--###-###-#### that's my cell phone ok.

Good luck

T., My daughter is 20 months old and last month or so, she had an unexplained very high fever for several days (she showed no bacterial infection or ear infection). They thought it could be a urinary tract infection, so she had to have a catheter inserted to collect urine. She had to have more blood drawn at the same visit. Needless to say she was miserable and I wanted to cry because of course I had to hold her down for the needles and catheter. But it was a very fast procedure. They inserted it and the bladder drains immediately. It took maybe one minute. Then the results came back rather quickly as well. Turns out she didn't have a urinary tract infection after all, but the roseola virus which showed itself as a rash maybe a week after the fever started. I don't think it was painful but maybe a little scary and uncomfortable, especially when you have a fever to begin with. Just wanted to give you a little comfort that it is a very quick and non-harsh procedure, but true, it is clearly no fun either.

sorry you had to go thru this, w/ the cathater... but like Rebecca said they do have a little bag like thing that goes on them with a sticky substance to keep the pee in and you then put it in a sterile cup they give you and put in fridge and or and take it in asap to be tested. My daughters both had uti's reapeatadly and this is what the Doc gave us. You can put it on with a diaper. You could even do a clean catch yourself by putting them on potty and getting the cup w/lid and catching in midstream while they potty, mine didnt have to be potty trained for me to do this, just walking etc. maybe in the future you could ask about this instead of the cath, they usually dont like to use a cath unless it is something that continues etc but on the first time? Good luck to you.

My daughter had VesicoUreteral Reflux Disease or Kidney Reflux. She was 9 weeks old when she got a 105.5 fever and was unresponsive. I called 911 and she was taken to Cook's. We spent 2 weeks there and they did 2 surgeries, the first to correct the grade 5 malformation and the second to place stints 12 hours after the first surgery because her ureters completely swelled shut.

I recommend you DO NOT use Dr. Pugach (Pediatric Urologist). He has a horrible bedside manner and he is just plain rude and won't help us with the problems she is having now. I would get this done. It's not pleasent but compared to the problems you could have.

What they are going to do is a VCUG or a Voiding CystoUrethra Graph or something like that, it's been about 7 months since Jordan last had one. They insert a Foley Cath into the urethra and insert dye. They will then take multiple xrays to see if the ureters are pushing the liquid back into the kidneys, which causes the infection. The girls who do it are so nice and there are alot of toys to play with. They make it as painless as possible. They will probably also do a kidney ultrasound. We are changing to Dr. Tim Black out of Cook's.

Anyway, I hope your little boy feels better. UTI's are horrible. I know you may not want to put him through that, but my daughter is now almost 5 and is still having problems because of VURD. She has scarred kidneys because of all the break through infections and high blood pressure because of the scarring. In my opinion, it's worth it to get him checked out.

Yes, you really should let them do this. If you don't it may develop into something more serious. To avoid this in the future, if it is a urinary tract infection, don't let him sit in any body of water that has even the slightest bit of soapy residue in it. When you bath him you can't let him play in it unless it's completely clear water. when your done letting him play and are ready to bathe him let the water out of the tub. Just soap him up and rinse him very well especially the diaper area.

My daughter was 4 yrs. old and got one and had to be catheterized. It broke my heart but she was in more pain because she was holding her urine so long because she knew it would hurt. No matter what, she would not let the urine go. This happened twice before I found out what to do to prevent them. She started taking showers and I did not let her sit in any water at all. She has never had one since.

You can buy a little shower head and hose that attaches to the shower wall with a suction cup. You would have to shop around for it now. It's been a long time and I don't know where you can get them now.
Good luck to you.
Lonie

Hi there I know its been 3 years or more after you posted this but I need help and need advice from a mon who has had her son going trough the catheter thing!. My dr. told me that was the rigt thing to do! It was horrible! my son is only 2 years old. He has know an urinary infection wich is been treated with antibiotic, but here is my problem: he was going to the toilet fine rigth before the catheter thing. He is potty trained, but afeter the procedure I took him to the bathroom because he wanted to go he started crying. Asked the dr. and she said give him a lot of water he will pee in a couples of hours and be fine. Well he hold it for 14 hours on that day, now he is scared of going to the bathroom even the potty, refuses to wear diapers. Its been 3 days afeter the catheter he is doing the same holding the pee until he can not do it anymore. Has your son had the same problem? I need help please I dont know what to do . thanks

I think you'll know if he actually has an infection. If it were me, I wouldn't do the catheter thing. My chiropractor told me to give him cranberry juice, lots of water, etc. You will also know by the color of his pee....is it really really yellow, have a bad smell to it, have tiny crystal-like pieces in it (although they can sometimes get this from disposable diapers.) Sometimes, doctors jump to extreme measures without waiting things out and watching for more signs or trying other solutions.

As for a homeopathic remedy, have him eat yogurt with active cultures and drink cranberry juice and lots of water. The less sugar in the cranberry juice the better it is. I would venture to say you will be lucky if you can get him to drink cranapple. You might try crancherry. Just make sure it is 100% juice. They also now have the yogurt in little containers that he can drink. I think they are pretty good. In addition, my doctor said don't give them bubble baths. Bubble baths can cause a urinary track infection. If he has a urinary track infection then maybe these things will help. If he doesn't, it can't hurt him. Cranberries are high in Vitamin C and Yogurt is good for you. Good Luck.

well, I don't know if this would work on a baby or not, but I have seen those UTI test strips at Walgreens where you dip them in pee to see if there's an infection. I am not sure if they want to do the cath to ensure a clean catch or if it is just because that is the fastest way to collect enough urine to test. I would ask why before consenting but don't wait, it could spread into his kidneys if it is a UTI and is left untreated and that is BAD news.

Is there anyway you can get a "clean catch" of urine? That would avoid the catheter. A good time to collect one is as soon as he wakes up. Or you could let him run around diaperless and try to "catch" him urinating. You would need a sterile collection cup from the MD/lab. There are other ways, but they get a little more technical (I was a nurse, so collecting urine was a frequent part of the job.) But you should know that a catheter is uncomfortable, but not painful. If you suspect a UTI (urinary tract infection), try giving him a lot of cranberry juice and lots of water. The cranberry juice changes the ph of the urine, which discourages bacterial growth. And the water will help produce more urine, and everytime he urinates, he will "flush out" bacteria.

But whatever you do, don't let the infection continue untreated for too long. A UTI can travel into the bladder and kidneys. So look for the other signs of a UTI, small & frequent urinations, pain when urinating, fever (which he has), dark & concentrated urine. You may be able to find a doctor willing to treat the infection without a urine culture, if multiple symptoms are present that indicate a UTI. If you do go for the catheter, be sure to remain relaxed and assuring for your son, but firm. He'll take his cues from you. I hope that helps a little.

I would have them check, if they feel it is warranted. Yes, a catheter hurts a bit, but since an untreated UTI can lead to kidney damage it is worth doing.

My daughter had a UTI at 18 months old that did get to her kidney, but thankfully the tests they did afterward (which are more uncomfortable than a catheter, by the way) showed that her kidneys weren't damaged.

B.

Our daughter had a UTI that turned into a bladder infection that was so bad she ended up in the hospital for a wekk when she was less than 2. I would strongly recomend letting the doctor run the test. It may be uncomfotable or even a little painful for him temporarily, but it will be a lot better than if the infection progresses. The whole thing will probably scar you far more than it ever will him.