Mysterious UTI, need some advice!
Posted , 3 users are following.
Hello everyone,
I'm a 36 year old male and sexually active. In april this year i noticed a light 'bother' in the region of my prostate, like a small cramp. I have done different blood and urine tests between april and june, that were clear every time (no cancer, no std's, no bacteria).
Since it was not clearing up, i went to see a urologist. He noticed signs of infection through echography (fluid in the prostate) and prescribed me Cefuroxim for 3 weeks. These have worked in a first time, but after 3 weeks the bother came back. He then suggested we test everything over again, which resulted in the sudden discovery of enterococcus bacteria in both sperm and urine in july. Even though it was very mysterious that the tests i had done before didn't show anything and now they did, i was relieved to hear that they had find something that explained the bother. Urologist prescribed me Levofloxacine first, but i had to stop after a few days due to painful tendons (is an uncommon side effect). So we changed the treatment to Amoxiciline for 3 weeks.
Within the first 10 days i felt great because it had a clear effect on the pain in my prostate, despite the typical side effects of antibiotics (occasional diarrhea, weakness, light nausea). But after that everything turned worse. I suddenly started having acute diarrhea, heavy abdominal pains, and a UTI that went from tip of the penis to prostate (more of a burning sensation than the 'cramp' i had before), swelling of the lymph nodes and light muscular pain and weakness.
While continuing treatment, i went to see the urologist again. We tested everything and the results were even more mysterious: enterococcus gone, no sign of a possible std, no HIV, not even high levels of white blood cells. We did find fluid around my testicles on the echography. The conclusion was that my body had no more resistance after having taken so many antibiotics on such a short term... My treatment with Amoxiciline came to an end a few days later and only the heavy diarrhea and abdominal pains went away. Today, a week after having stopped antibiotics, I am still having painful swollen lymph nodes (throat, under my arms and at the base of my legs), muscle weakness, bad physical shape, burning sensation in my penis and light swelling of the testicles and nothing seems to be changing.
Does anyone here have experience with this kind of mysterious UTI?
Here are some thoughts i had: candida outbreak, mumples, false negative HIV, toxoplasmosis?
Thank you for your insights!
0 likes, 2 replies
miriam65408 a.bal
Posted
Antibiotics do more than just kill off bad bacteria - they also kill your good bacteria! Your whole gut consists of billions of bacteria which do a very important job for you. Recent research has also linked these (your microbiome) to just about every aspect of your health. I would agree that taking so many antibiotics in a short time has really upset you. Did anyone ever suggest you also took probiotics to help replace the good guys? Probably not. Also pre-biotics, foods that encourage good bacteria to proliferate, should be taken - but most doctors forget about them. They assume that antibiotics just do the job they're taken for and the rest of you is totally unconnected!
Levofloxacin, as you found, can cause painful tendons - this is definitely NOT an uncommon side effect. All the fluoroquinolones (Levofloxacin is one of 5 main drugs in this class) can cause this side effect and, in many patients who are advised to continue to take it after the warning signs, they can cause tendon rupture. The Achilles are most often affected as these bear a lot of strain but all other tendons are at risk. The list of possible side effects for all the fluoroquinolones is very long and the FDA have issued several black box warnings about risk of aortic aneurysm, hyperglycemia, mental health problems and permanent peripheral neuropathy. This is just the tip of the iceberg so you were very lucky to be told to stop taking it.
I think your problem is caused by all your cells being compromised by the various antibiotics. Some of your symptoms (esp. muscle weakness, lymph nodes and bad physical shape) could be due to the Levofloxacin, which can take a long time to clear out of your system (months). Your other problems are maybe not so common for fluoroquinolones but it could be the amoxycillin finished off what the Levo started. It could be candida as all the antibiotic activity will have left your gut open to an overgrowth of this. It's unlikely to be mumples (measles? Mumps?) or HIV related unless you know you've been exposed.
Treat your body very kindly as it has suffered a huge attack. Do everything you can to repair it by eating only clean healthy food (no pesticides or additives, no junk or sugar, only good fats, loads of green and colourful vegetables ). No alcohol, no sweeteners, no chemicals and no smoking.
Also check out the fluoroquinolone discussions on this forum as you will find other tips there about antioxdants and other supplements.
a.bal miriam65408
Posted
Hello Miriam,
Thank you for your insights. I have read them with great interest. In the meanwhile I have an update. In the beginning it seemed to be just the 'aftermath' of so much antibiotics, but a retest gave the answer: Mumps + E. Coli bacteria in the urinary tract (and probably already spread out to articulations and spine). This explains why i was feeling so weak and had extremely swollen glands.
So ironically i have to take antibiotics again for the E. Coli bacteria. I started yesterday and no real results yet, but we will see in some time. The only thing that still worries me is the permanence of swollen glands all over my body. I have a hard time believing it is due to the bacteria or mumps. If i'm not mistaken, i have contracted mumps already 5 weeks ago (so it should be gone by now) and E. Coli is - to my knowledge - not responsible for swelling of all the glands (excepts the ones in the crotch of course). Any insights on this?
Thank you!
Anthony