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"Question My urinary infection keeps recurring. I have taken three lots of antibiotics. Is there nothing else to help to stop the infection?  I drink hot water instead of tea and coffee. I don&amp;#039;t think taking antibiotics is helping.  Answer Has your urinary infection been correctly diagnosed?  Doctors often assume that there is an infection from the symptoms, which usually consists of frequency (the urge to empty the bladder all the time), discomfort and burning when passing urine and sometimes the presence of blood in the urine.  But very similar or identical symptoms can occur in the absence of any bacterial infection.  Only a mid-stream specimen of urine cultured in the laboratory and then tested for antibiotic sensitivity can enable you to be prescribed the most appropriate antibiotic correctly.  In 50 percent of cases where these symptoms are present however, there is no microbiological infection and the cystitis symptoms will not respond to antibiotics no matter how often they are taken.  Whole books on the subject of sexual cystitis or irritant cystitis have been published.  If it is an infection proven on a laboratory test you need to be given the appropriate antibiotic and have follow-up tests to ensure the infection has been successfully treated.  If it remains present, further investigations are required to rule out kidney cysts, abnormal valves in the urinary plumbing or any congenital abnormality affecting that part of your anatomy.  But if it is not an infection other possibilities exist including a narrowing of the pipe from the bladder to the outside (a urethral stricture), a twitchy bladder where the muscles have too much tone and continually want to contract, or some other problem affecting the urodynamics.  If any of these are suspected your GP can refer you to a gynaecologist with a special interest in urology, and urinary flow studies can be conducted to assess the problem further.  In the meantime take cranberry juice, plenty of lemon barley and gallons of water to dilute any germs and flush the system through. The good news is that bladder retraining or a simple procedure known as urethral dilatation to stretch any narrowed pipes can in the main produce lasting relief. Yours sincerely The NetDoctor Medical Team  Other Qs &amp;amp;amp; As Cystitis Cystitis and oral sex Dark urine following cystitis treatment High creatinine levels How painful is a cystoscopy? I can&amp;#039;t understand this medical jargon I think I&amp;#039;ve been having cystitis for the past four years Itchy foreskin Low-grade cystitis Non-specific urethritis Persistent cystitis Recuring bladder infection Recurring UTI Urinary tract infection symptoms What do low creatinine levels mean? What is happening to my daughter? What is nephronophthisis? What is sclerosing cholangitis? Why is this enzyme raised? Will my urine infection come back?  Last updated 01.09.2014 "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/ask-the-expert/liver-kidney-and-urinary-system/a2951/urinary-infection-wont-go-away/>