UTI???

[ConcernedMom1971]

I am a 36 year-old female weening off Welbutrin and Prozac (I'm down to 1 of each every 2 days).  My problem started about 6 weeks ago (even at that time I was only taking each med 1x every other day) and I thought I had just a pretty bad bladder infection.  It began right after a very odd period.  They typically last 3-5 days, but this one only lasted 2 days.  The pain and feeling like I needed to go (even though I could only pee a tiny bit) came on VERY suddenly.  I felt like I had to go constantly.  When I did sit down to go, the pressure built up to the point I felt like my vagina was actually going to explode.  It was extremely painful.  My symptoms began to subside for a day or 2 then came back fiercely.  My doctor prescribe a 7 day course of Nitrofour - an antibiotic for UTI's.  It seemed to be clearing, though it never went completely away. 2 days after I stopped the antibiotics (I took the complete course), it all came back again almost as fiercely as before.  I drank 2 bottles of pure cranberry juice in 2 days time (a treatment reccommended by a doctor) and began taking cranberry supplements and acidophilus from the health food store.  I've since had another period - this one a little heavier than normal, but I'm assuming the 1st period I didn't ovulate and the 2nd period I did and had more lining to discharge because of the light period previously.  The urgent need to pee has passed and the severe pressure and pain as passed, but there is still lingering pain when I begin to go and after I finish.  Help, please.

[ConcernedMom1971]

I did go back to the doctor - 3 times in fact.  I have now been on 5 different antibiotics - 4 of them overlapping each other.  I took Levaquin, Flagyl, Bactrim and a 3 day supply of bvaginal suppositories - I can't remember the name, it was Clin...  something.  Anyway, the doctor sent out my culture and did a pelvic exam, and looked at the sample under her micrscope.  She said I have vaginitis and a  bladder infection.  She said I have an overgrowth of bacteria in that entire area.  My body seems to respond initially to the anitbiotcs, but 2 or 3 days into the 20 day course, the symptoms come back progressively stronger.  I have finished all of the antibiotics except the Bactrim - and I only have 2 days left of that.  I just don't understand why I'm not responding to these antibiotics.  Any suggestions or answers would be WONDERFUL!  I'm goling on 8 weeks of this pain and discomfort.  I don't know what to do next.  Thanks!

[Lennox Hoyte, M.D.]

Have your urine cultured to rule out a persistant bladder infection. Ig the culture comes back positive, ask to know the "sensitivities" of the cultured bacteria. If this was resistant to Nitrofurantoin, then ask for an antibiotic that the bug is sensitive to. Take it for 7 days. then ask for a "test of cure" in 2 weeks. If the culture is negative, and youstill have the symptoms, thenget an evaluation by a pelvic floor physical therapist, who may be able to diagnose pelvic floor trigger points, which can also cause bladder spasms. If you have trigger points, then the physical therapist can treat these with physical therapy.

Dr. Hoyte