Urinary Tract Infection: Can UTI get complicated and need hospitalisation? | Health

Urinary Tract Infection is usually treated with medical intervention and medication however, did you know that there are some cases where UTI can get complicated and require hospitalisation as well? This leads to many questions as to how it leads to complications and under what circumstances is UTI patient hospitalised and how treatment will differ.

UTI can be classified as complicated UTI and non-complicated UTI, depending on the severity and complications involved which brings us to the question, what can lead to complicated UTI? According to health experts, there are many risk factors that can lead to/related to complicated UTI which includes urinary obstruction, urinary stones, kidney diseases or comorbidities such as diabetes mellitus or immune deficiency.

Moreover, a UTI patient that does not respond to standard medications can also be termed as complicated UTI patient, who may require hospitalisation depending on the severity of the condition. If not diagnosed early, complicated UTI can lead to serious problems like sepsis (life threatening condition which can lead to organ failure) or irregularity of organ functioning.

Recurrent UTI can be termed as ≥ 3 UTIs in 12 months, along with presence of risk factors for complicated UTI. In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Haresh Vastarpara, Intensivist in Surat, revealed the examples of a complicated UTI as:

• UTIs in males are by definition considered complicated UTIs as they have protective anatomy.
• Infections occurring due to anatomical abnormalities, like, an obstruction, hydronephrosis, Renal tract calculi or colovesical fistula.
• Infections occurring due to an immune-compromised state like steroid use, post-chemotherapy, diabetes, HIV
• Atypical organisms
• Multi-drug resistant organisms
• Infections are occurring in pregnancy
• Infections that occur after instrumentation
• Infections in renal transplant and spinal cord injury patients
• Infections in patients with impaired renal function, dialysis, or anuria
• Infections following surgical prostatectomies or radiotherapy

Bringing his expertise to the same, Dr Suchay Parikh, Consultant Physician and Intensivist at Tristar Hospital in Surat, highlighted the signs and symptoms as:

• High Grade Fever
• Frequent Urination
• Passing blood in the urine
• Decrease in urine output
• Pain and discomfort in lower back and lower abdomen
• Dizziness and vomiting

He said, “It is recommended that a suspected patient must consult a physician and seek medical advice if one experiences any of the above symptoms. Also, if a UTI patient is taking medication and is not experiencing any improvement in the condition, there are high chances that UTI is caused by resistant bacteria. This again will require immediate medical intervention.”

Talking about the treatment, Dr Suchay Parikh pointed out, “A complicated UTI patient does not respond to standard forms of treatment, the doctor might advise for certain tests to determine urinary blockage or infected urinary tract or infected kidney before initiating the treatment. The tests will also help in finding the causative bacteria via culture test, basis which the course of treatment is decided. Appropriate antibiotics are selected based on the stage of infection and the health condition of the patient. Right antibiotic selection, right dosage and duration of antibiotic therapy is imperative for successful treatment of complicated UTI.”