Onset and Symptoms

• A urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common infections affecting Americans (predominantly women) in America. A UTI occurs when bacteria from the digestive tract attach to the urethra and multiply. When the urine moves through the urethra to the bladder, so do the bacteria contained within. These bacteria can affect different parts of the urinary system, including the urethra, bladder or kidneys. This causes many painful symptoms, such as pain when urinating, cloudy or bloody urine, fever and nausea.
  
  

Diagnosis and Treatment

• If you suspect you may have a UTI, you should see a doctor, who can test your urine for the presence of bacteria. If you have a UTI, a doctor will prescribe antibacterial medications. The antibiotics may be one dose only or a three- to 10-day antibiotic course. It is important to take the full course of antibiotics, as failure to do so could result in re-infection.
  
  Once a person takes the antibiotics, he or she should see their symptoms subside in one to three days. This does not mean the body is entirely infection-free, and a doctor may schedule a follow-up urinalysis after the antibiotics course is completed (typically seven to 10 days later) to determine if the infection has cleared.
  
  Patients with severe kidney infections may take longer to recover, sometimes as long as two weeks. Patients with this type of infection may need to be hospitalized in order to provide necessary fluids and medications to the body.
  
  

Ongoing Infections

• Sometimes symptoms associated with a urinary tract infection do not subside with antibiotics. This can be a symptom of a more serious infection, such as a urinary obstruction or another more serious disease or disorder. Also, men with a UTI may take longer to experience symptom relief (three to five days), as infections related to the prostate are more difficult to treat.