UTIs and Macrobid
Posted , 7 users are following.
I came down with a UTI a few days ago. The little culprits are enterococcus. I was given Macrobid for 5 days. I am half way through it and it is helping with the infection but I am getting terrible large muscle pains when I stretch my quadriceps, hamstrings, shoulder muscles. Has anyone else had this problem and if so is it temporary? The other antibiotic offered is amoxicilin. Thanks.
0 likes, 20 replies
ken19524 Howard31850
Posted
Howard, check out D-mannose. I understand that it is a natural product that will help against an e-coli infection in the urinary tract. It's found naturally in cranberry juice, but I found some pills that are much more concentrated. I took them during the 9 months or so that I was self-cathing. I was pretty careful when I was catheterizing, but I thought that I would take prevention up another step. I never did have a UTI during that time. Perhaps the D-mannose helped. I also took Vitamin C during that time.
There are other homeopathic remedies as well, but I don't recall which ones right now. You do have to watch which homeopathic medications that you take, but generally they're safe and have fewer side effects.
ken19524 Howard31850
Posted
You might also Google 'homeopathic remedies for UTIs'. There are some suggestions that may help such as taking probiotics, drinking unsweetened cranberry juice (not easy!) and some other ideas.
ken19524 Howard31850
Posted
I just read through the side effects and warnings related to Macrobid. It sounds like it's a powerful antibacterial intended just for UTIs, so that's good. But if you're experiencing the kinds of issues that you're describing, you need to talk to your doctor. Please don't wait to do that. There are some kinds of side effects that can cause serious problems. For example, antibiotics can cause c-difficile, which is a serious infection in the intestines. Sometimes antibiotics can kill off the good bacteria in the intestinal tract and allow certain other types of bacteria to multiply. There are other side effects possible as well.
Howard31850 ken19524
Posted
Thanks Ken for your advice. I have been taking D-Mannose for the 30 months I've been doing CIC. I take it twice a day. This is my first CIC and it is very incapacitating. Sometimes at night when I CIC I first try to natural void which makes me want to have a poop. That can cause the toilet water to splash up on the penis. Usually I clean it thoroughly before starting the catheter but I think I didn't do that last week. I will change my procedure at night from now on and just go straight to the catheter.
I do take probiotic yoghurt with the antibiotics just to avoid the problems you mention.
To make matters worse I am on edge waiting to hear the results of my MRI last week and if it shows any cancerous lesions. A recent liquid biopsy suggested that but it may not be accurate for BPH patients.
Take care and thanks.
Howard
arlowood Howard31850
Posted
Hi Howard
Muscle and joint pain is listed as one of the "rare" side effects of Macrobid (Nitrofurantion) so you may just be one of the unlucky ones who is sensitive to the drug in that way. I would talk to your physician and explain what you are experiencing. He may switch you to something else or ask you to stick it out until your course of treatment is complete.
The alternative offered (amoxycilin) may be better tolerated but as with most antibiotics it does have its own range of side effects - although muscle/joint pain does not appear to be listed.
I would flag up a caution if suggests ciprofloxacin as an alternative as it has been reported to cause tendonitis and tendon rupture is severe cases. I know this from personal experience as I was prescribed ciprofloxacin some years ago for a UTI and ended up almost unable to move within a couple of days due to joint pain and stiffness. Fortunately no tendon rupture in my case but not an experience I would recommend to anyone else
Howard31850 arlowood
Posted
Thanks for your reply. I do know about the risks of Cipro and have had the problems you mention in the past. I guess I will just stick out the next 2 days with the Macrobid. I will try taking 2 Advils with it in the hope the muscle pain is less. Thanks again. Howard
rdemyan Howard31850
Posted
Howard:
I recently had a particularly nasty UTI caused by E-Coli. I first tried amoxicillin for ten days. It seemed to work, but I was still sweating at night afterwards. Went back to the doctor and they determined I still had e-Coli. This time we tried Cephalexin for 14 days and that did the trick.
As noted by Ken, whenever you take antibiotics be sure to take probiotics as well. The antibiotics kill off the good bacteria as well as the bad. The probiotics should help to keep your gut flora intact and should prevent c-difficile, which can be very serious. There is tons of information out on the web regarding taking probiotics during periods when you take antibiotics (in fact many people, including me, take them every day).
Here's what I wrote to another poster several days ago, regarding UTIs:
Other things to try to help prevent UTIs, esp. if they are caused by EColi:
Finally, if recurring UTIs are something that worry you, you can get urine dipsticks for home use. After testing several brands, I recommend the Siemens Multistix 10 SG, which you can buy on eBay (100 strips for about $20). Siemens is a big reliabile company (I would avoid the cheaper brands sold on Amazon). If you test your urine frequently (only takes a couple of minutes), the dipstick results might help you get out in front of the bad phase of a UTI and therefore to help you seek treatment earlier (including the natural remedies already described).
Good luck.
Howard31850 rdemyan
Posted
Thanks rdemyan for your advice. I have not heard about the biofilms so I will look into that.
I have a 10 parameter kit which I use frequently because I get frequent urethra irritations from my CIC. Those irritations start out feeling like a CIC but the test kit shows me it just irritations. This was my first real UTI.
I also suffer from epididimytis due to a failed varicocele embolization procedure a year ago. When it flares up I take Kelfex for 10 days which usually helps. But I don't like taking so many antibiotics for the reasons you mention.
It really is a tough situation getting a UTI with a large prostate BPH that requires CIC. I did a lot of screaming the first day as I still had to CIC to get the infected pee out of the bladder. Usually I still have normal voids of 200ml but now my prostate is so inflamed by the UTI that I have to rely on CIC entirely.
Thanks again. Howard
hank1953 Howard31850
Posted
Hi Howard, hope you get better soon. As long as you self cath, you will have UTIs recurring. It's usually in the asymptomatic form of UTI. It means bacteria is abound in your urine. As long as you are well than you are fine. However, when your immune system is down, they can cause problem. The way I handle it is by monitoring my urine. Whenever it becomes cloudy, I consume some crushed raw garlic. I know that it works because my urine becomes clear, for at least few days afterwards.
Howard31850 hank1953
Posted
That is interesting but I get heart burn from garlic!
rdemyan Howard31850
Posted
Instead you could try Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract Formula 102. Much easier on the stomach.
hank1953 Howard31850
Posted
I'm curious. You have a large prostate. Have you considered surgery ?
Howard31850 hank1953
Posted
Hi Hank - Yes I think about it every day.
For my extreme prostate my options are Holep, FLA, open simple prostatectomy and robotic simple prostatectomy. FLA would be the least invasive but it is not covered by insurance and would take a big part of my savings. Holep is not surgical and is covered by insurance. The problem is I would have to travel to a different city for it and stay there for a few weeks to recover which means being away from home. I can get the open SP here at the local hospital but the doctor says with my large prostate there would be a lot of bleeding requiring transfusions. The robotic SP is much better in this regard but again I would have to travel far away and stay in a hotel for a few weeks.
So this is why I do CIC and hope in time some new procedures will come available that are not so risky or costly. Take care.
hank1953 Howard31850
Posted
HolEp should be your first choice, imho. From what I read, HolEp is considered by many as minimally invasive. Hospital stay and catherization: 1-2 days. Full recovery: 1-2 weeks.
Howard31850 hank1953
Posted
Thanks Hank. I worry about incontinence with Holep as it pushes everything up into the bladder and then pulls it out through the urethra. This could destroy the internal sphincter. I need to study this mroe.
hank1953 Howard31850
Posted
Incontinence rate for HolEp is much lower than for TURP, and especially lower than for open prostatectomy. It's usually temporary and resolved after 3 months.
rdemyan hank1953
Posted
Howard and Hank:
I checked my notes and had the following written down about Dr. Nicole Miller at Vanderbilt University who is highly rated in the Holep procedure:
"post says that she leaves a little bit of prostate tissue around the urethral sphincter which she said would help prevent incontinence issues."
'post' is probably a post in the Patient forum. At any rate, she might be a good doctor to contact and have a discussion with. I made this note to myself because my biggest concern is incontinence after a BPH procedure.
Howard31850 rdemyan
Posted
Thanks - I will give this a second look once I get (hopefully) a clear MRI . Looks like the other prostate injection biotech company collapsed this morning after their second injection biopsy results had no effect. I think we are stuck with the current roster of procedures for our lives.
hank1953 rdemyan
Posted
rd, thanks for sharing. I've read from several studies that permanent incontinence risk for HolEp is about 1%. Considering its effectiveness and durability, it's not a bad risk. All procedures carry some risks anyhow.