[Local Medical]90% of lower urinary tract infections in young men are related to sexual behavior

Text Zeng Yongtai

Clinically, the problem of lower urinary tract infection in men is not uncommon.

In young men under the age of 40, 90% of cases are caused by sexually transmitted diseases, while the other 10% of cases are caused by improper hygiene habits, or by abnormal urinary tract structure or function.

(KUALA LUMPUR) If older men suffer from lower urinary tract infection, the most common reason is that they have enlarged prostate or urinary tract stones, which cause urine to accumulate in the bladder, making it difficult to urinate smoothly and eventually lead to infection.

Women are at higher risk of infection than men

Dr. Fam Xeng Inn, consultant urologist at National University Medical Center (UKMMC), pointed out that urinary tract infection is simply a bacterial infection of the urinary tract system.

“Clinically, in addition to dividing urinary tract infection into upper urinary tract infection (kidney, ureter) and lower urinary tract infection (bladder, urethra), we will also distinguish it as complicated (complicated) or uncomplicated (uncomplicated) ) urinary tract infection.”

“It is well known that women are more prone to lower urinary tract infections than men. The reason is that women’s urethra is quite close to the vagina and anus, and it is easy to bring bacteria into the urethra due to sexual behavior or improper hygiene habits. Women’s urethra is shorter than men, and bacteria Easy access to the bladder via the urethra. Because this type of infection has no other obvious cause, it is classified as an uncomplicated infection.”

He emphasized that as long as the urinary tract infection is caused by abnormalities in the structure or function of the urinary tract, or the cause of the infection is related to the patient’s recent urological or gynecological surgery, the installation of a urinary catheter, the patient’s immune function, If there are other metabolic diseases and other factors, then this type of infection will be classified as complicated infection.

“In addition, men have a long urethra, so they have a good protection mechanism to prevent bacterial invasion, and the infection rate should be relatively low. Therefore, as long as a man has a urinary tract infection, it should be treated as a complicated infection. .In fact, the problem of lower urinary tract infection in men is not uncommon in clinical practice.”

“In cases of lower urinary tract infection in young men under the age of 40,

90% are caused by sexually transmitted diseases.

The sexually transmitted diseases referred to here are not syphilis or herpes as you imagine,

but by gonococcus

Or chlamydia (chlamydia) caused by the more commonly transmitted sexually transmitted diseases. “

Such patients usually only need to take corresponding antibiotic drugs orally for a week to solve their infection problems, and the patients will not have the risk of recurrent infection. “

10% due to poor hygiene habits

“The other 10% of cases are caused by improper hygiene habits, or by abnormal urinary tract structure or function. For example, the patient itself has an enlarged prostate or urinary tract stones, which can prevent the patient from being effective. Urination, so that urine accumulates in the bladder, which eventually leads to infection problems, and this is the most common cause of lower urinary tract infections in older men.”

“Or patients with congenital urinary tract abnormalities, such as vesi coureteral reflux and bifid collecting system. If such patients do not identify the underlying cause and treat it , then he would be at risk of recurrent infection.”

urinary urgency frequent urination painful urination

Severe infection can bleed

Once a man has a lower urinary tract infection, he must see a specialist doctor. The doctor needs to inquire about the patient’s sexual habits and history in detail. If the infection is not caused by a sexually transmitted disease, a more in-depth investigation is required.

Fan Hengyin said that if an elderly male has a lower urinary tract infection problem, the doctor will usually order further measurement of his urination rate, or use digital rectal examination (digital rectal examination) to check his prostate, and even use ultrasound scan to observe his bladder or kidney condition .

Urinalysis to diagnose urinary tract infection

“Clinically, urine tests can assist doctors in diagnosing urinary tract infections. As long as the white blood cell count in the urine is too high, urinary tract infections can be diagnosed. There are three main symptoms of lower urinary tract infections in men and women, namely urgency and frequent urination. And painful urination. If the infection problem is serious, the patient may even urinate blood.”

“Lower urinary tract infections in men can also lead to orchitis and prostatitis. Symptoms of orchitis include testicular swelling and fever. Men with these symptoms should also think that their lower urinary tract system may have been infected by bacteria.”

semen accumulation prostate sclerosis

He said that prostatitis can be discussed independently from lower urinary tract infection, because it is another big medical condition. At present, there are relatively few researches on it in the medical community, and most of them are medical hypotheses.

“As far as we know, prostatitis can be divided into bacterial and non-bacterial. Bacterial, as the name suggests, is caused by bacteria, while non-bacterial prostatitis is currently speculated to be due to changes in the microstructure of the prostate, prostate semen Inability to effectively excrete semen accumulation, prostate sclerosis, the patient had bacterial prostatitis and other factors.”

sexwear a condominfection prevention

Question 1. Can frequent masturbation lead to urinary tract infection? How can men prevent it?

Answer 1.It rarely happens that the urethra is not touched during masturbation, but you should also pay attention to hygiene and wash your hands first. Practice safe sex, wear condoms, and do not change sexual partners at will. If you change sexual partners, you must wear condoms.

Elderly men should pay attention to whether they have symptoms such as dysuria, slow urination, urgency, frequent urination, etc. If so, they should see a specialist doctor for prostate examination and timely treatment.

No evidenceInsufficient drinking water

Question 2. Will not drinking enough water or holding back urine cause urinary tract infection?

Answer 2.Insufficient drinking water can easily cause urinary tract stones. There is still no strong scientific research data to prove that insufficient drinking water can cause urinary tract infection. But I still encourage people to drink enough water every day. A normal adult weighing 70 to 80 kilograms needs to drink 2500 milliliters of water every day.

Yes, although there are not many scientific research data on urinary tract infection caused by holding back urine, there are indeed many patients who have urinary tract infection caused by holding back urine in clinical practice. Some can also lead to future problems with overactive bladder.

female urinary tract infectionheritable

Q3. Is it possible that the urinary tract infection is caused by genetic factors?

Answer 3.There is no so-called hereditary factor for urinary tract infections in men, but women do. If a woman’s mother has frequent recurrent UTIs (ie, 2 infections in six months, or 3 infections in a year), that woman is also prone to recurrent infections, but the gene is How to change, the medical community is still unclear.

In addition, if a woman has a problem with “non-secreted ABO blood group antigen”, she is also prone to recurrent urinary tract infection problems, and this secretory ability is also controlled by genetic factors.

complicated infectionemergence of drug resistance

Q4. In the treatment of urinary tract infection, is there any problem of antibiotic resistance?

Answer 4.If it is an uncomplicated infection in women, commonly used antibiotics such as trimethoprim, sulfamethoxazole, and nitrofurantoin will not cause resistance problems, and these antibiotics are generally available and effective.

Drug resistance problems mostly occur in patients with complex infections, such as those who have undergone surgery, have catheters installed, have diabetes, and male urinary tract infections (due to prostate enlargement, urinary tract stones, urinary accumulation in the kidneys, etc.) Infection), these patients need special urine bacterial culture, in order to use the correct corresponding antibiotics to treat.

urinary tract infectionbacteria run up

Q5. Will lower urinary tract infection affect the upper urinary tract?

Answer 5.Yes, bacteria can travel up and a severe lower urinary tract infection can lead to an upper urinary tract infection, also known as an infection of the kidneys. In addition, common causes of kidney infection include infected stones and uncontrolled diabetes that makes the patient immunocompromised.

Source link