UTI During Pregnancy

Pregnancy is one of the joyous occasions for every woman. A woman goes through many positive and exciting feelings as she senses the growth of her baby within her. But, along with these elated emotions, a woman may be worried about UTI during pregnancy. The obvious cause of a expecting mother's worry is her baby. Any form of stress, disease or infection may directly or indirectly affect the baby. Having this thought in mind, a woman begins to search answers for urinary tract infection during pregnancy. Some of the questions that one may have in mind about urinary tract infection during pregnancy are discussed below.

Causes
UTI is the acronym for urinary tract infection. It is also called urinary bladder infection. It is caused by bacteria in and around the skin of vagina and anus. During pregnancy, the bladder tends to shift its position due to the pressure from the uterus and the baby from above. This makes it easier for the bacteria to travel up to the bladder. When they get optimum conditions they tend to multiply leading to bladder infection. This causes bladder infection symptoms like painful burning sensation when urinating.

Urinary tract infection during pregnancy occurs in 2 - 4% of pregnant women. This is due to hormonal changes occurring in a woman's body. The increase in the level of progesterone in the body, relaxes the muscles of the bladder and urinary tract. This makes it easy for the bacteria to travel up to the half squished bladder and cause bladder infection during pregnancy. Check out the bacterial infection during pregnancy causes and symptoms.

Symptoms
When a pregnant woman develops urinary tract infection, she may experience different signs and symptoms. The UTI symptoms during pregnancy may include few or most of the following symptoms:

• Pain, burning and discomfort while urinating
• Lower abdominal pain, sometimes just above the pubic bone
• Pelvic discomfort
• Urge to urinate more than usual
• Feeling of urgency to urinate
• Mucus or blood in urine
• Abdominal cramps
• Cloudy or foul-smelling urine
• Fever
• Back pain
• Nausea and vomiting

Treatment
It is very important that one seeks immediate treatment. This is because if the infection spreads to the kidneys, it may lead to kidney infection. The doctor may advice you antibiotics to treat UTI during pregnancy. These antibiotics for urinary tract infection may need to be taken for just 3 to 7 days. It is important that you complete your medication dose, to keep your baby safe. If the infection spreads it may lead to problems like high blood pressure during childbirth. It also increases risk of premature birth, low birth weight babies and in extreme cases, miscarriage. Also, do not take any medications without consulting a doctor. This may increase the risk of fetal damage.

How to Prevent UTI when You're Pregnant
It is a very scary thought to know one has developed urinary tract infection during pregnancy. One is worried about the effects of the infection on the baby. It is therefore, very important to prevent UTI when you're pregnant. The following points will prove to be helpful in reducing the chances of infection.

• You should drink about 6 to 8 glasses of water everyday. This will help flush out the urine and prevent bacterial growth.
• Drink fresh cranberry juice everyday. Cranberry juice prevents growth of bacteria in the bladder.
• Avoid use of soaps, sprays, powders, etc. on your urethra and genitals. This helps in the growth of bacteria by changing the pH of your vagina.
• Make sure you wear clean, cotton undergarments.
• Maintain genital hygiene at all times
• Whenever you have the urge to pee, you should urinate. Do not hold back as it may help in the spread of infection.

It is very important that you seek timely medical help to treat urinary tract infection during pregnancy. This is the only way to prevent a serious kidney infection as well as preterm labor. Take good care of yourself. Remember, a mother's health directly reflects on the health of the fetus.