Urinary Track Infection

Understanding The Urinary Tract Infection

Written by Barbara Green

Individuals of all ages can experience a urinary tract infection.  There are differences in what causes these conditions from one person to the next.  What's more, it is important to notice the signs and symptoms of the condition as soon as they become evident so that the pain can be taken care of before it worsens.  Babies and young children often have these infections due to poor hygiene, viruses or other conditions.  In adults, sexual encounters can bring on the condition. What Is It? The first thing to understand is what the urinary tract is.  This tract is the line that carries urine from your bladder and then out of the body.  It is part of the system that makes urine.  The urinary track includes your bladder, your kidneys all of the tubes that run between them.  The infection of this tract is usually called by bacteria or germs that somehow enter into the system.  In most cases, the individual will be suffering from a bladder infection.  This is not a serious condition assuming that the individual gets the necessary help as soon as possible.  If not, then they could allow the infection to spread to the kidneys.  A kidney infection, on the other hand, is a very serious condition that could do permanent damage to your kidneys and urinary tract. Causes For Urinary Tract Infections The causes for a urinary tract infection can range widely.  In most all cases, germs enter the body from outside of it.  Usually this happens through the urethra.  This is the tube that removes urine from the body and starts at the bladder.  Germs can come from your large intestine.  They can get into your urinary tract through contact with stool, which is the body's way of removing waste including these germs from your body.  But, when the germs enter through the urethra, they can travel up into the bladder quickly and cause a severe infection there.  The germs can also pass into the kidneys from the tract therefore causing a much more serious infection there. More women will experience urinary tract infections then men do.  Yet, everyone is likely to experience at least one during the course of their lifetime.  Women get infections like this more often because they have a smaller urethra which makes the spread of germs more likely to happen.  Sexual contact can make the spreading of germs much easier and may cause individuals to experience more urinary tract infections especially when proper hygiene methods are not taken. There are additional reasons why you may get a urinary tract infection.  For example, those that drink plenty of water and clear liquids are benefited from lower occurrences of urinary tract infections.  This is due to the fluids flushing out the urinary tract more often therefore removing more of the germs at a faster rate.  Those that have diabetes or those that are pregnant are more likely to get infections that those that are not.  If you have an enlarged prostate gland, you may also have more likelihood of getting a urinary tract infection. If you suffer from kidney stones, you too are likely to experience more infections.  In most of these situations, the slowing of urine out of the body is what allows for the infection to build because it is not washed out by the urine's passing.   In some cases, women will get continuous urinary tract infections.  In fact, doctors are unsure why some women get more than others do.

 

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