Urinary track infection

Hello I am a 30 year old woman. I used to suffer from urinary track infections (e-coli) and have been ok with it. It usually does not bother me if I drink alot of water every day. A month ago, I felt a burning, irritation sensation, so I went for an analysis and culture just to check and it turned out that the e-coli had disappeared and the analysis was negative. I went to my gynocologist who did a culture which was also negative. I am still sufferring from that irritation ( on a daily basis ) and not sure what to do.
Any help would be greatly appreciated

[David A Burks, MD]

HI,  it is not uncommon for a UTI to sensitize your urinary tract, so you feel sensations dispite the absence of an infection.  Usually the symptoms resolve spontaneously.   I note that you didn't mention that you were treated with an antibiotic. Dispite the normal culture I would first give you a standard 7 day course of an antibiotic to clear any low grade infection that was present but not picked up in the culture. If you are drinking lots of fluids you can dilute the bacteria out in a culture and it can be falsely negative for infection. Often a drug called pyridium is used to relieve the sensitivity problem after an infection.  If the problem persists it may be an early form of interstitial cystitis, an inflammatory condition of the bladder often triggered by an infection.  See your doctor or a Urologist who cana help you sort out these issues. Good Luck