What Are the Most Common Causes of Pus in Urine?
- Written By: C. Webb
- Edited By: Daniel Lindley
- Last Modified Date: 12 March 2013
-
Copyright Protected:
2003-2013 Conjecture Corporation
The most common causes of pus in urine are urinary tract infections (UTIs) and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Pus in the urine presents as either cloudy, frothy urine or brown discharge. In both UTIs and STDs, pus in the urine may be the only visible symptom, or there may be other symptoms accompanying it. In most cases, antibiotics are necessary to treat these causes of pus in urine.
UTIs are more common in women than men. Many patients don't realize they have a UTI until the pus appears. Pain during urination may accompany the pus in urine symptom. The pain may be felt deep inside the bladder, or at the tip of the urethra where the pus exits the body. Urine is typically sterile and free from bacteria, fungi, and viruses.
When a UTI is contracted, bacteria form in the urinary tract, which consists of kidneys, bladder, ureters, and the urethra. The infection grows and the body develops pus in an effort to fight the infection off. Pus is a combination of bacteria, sloughed skin cells, and, at times, blood. Disorders of the immune system, including diabetes, increase the risk of developing a UTI.
Women are more at risk for developing infection after having sex. Twenty percent of women who have one UTI will have another in the future, and 30 percent of those who have a second UTI will go on to have more. Eighty percent of those women will have recurring infections throughout their lives. Between two and four percent of pregnant women develop UTIs. Continued infections and pus in the urine call for further investigation, including an ultrasound of the patient's urinary tract system.
Sexually transmitted diseases are another common cause of pus in urine. Chlamydia and mycoplasma are two common STDs that present with pus in urine. Other symptoms include fever, weakness, and an overall feeling of being ill. STDs are suspected when patients have pus in the urine but do not show a bacterial infection in a urine culture. Treatment for STDs is a course of antibiotics.
Whenever a UTI or STD goes untreated and enters the kidneys, there is the potential for hospitalization. Patients whose infections have moved to the kidneys often become dehydrated because they cannot keep food or liquids down. UTIs are less frequent but more serious in men than in women.
Related Videos
Discuss this Article
|
browncoat
Post 2 |
@Iluviaporos - If one person knows they have a UTI or a similar kind of infection, they should tell their partner. If they use condoms it will help to prevent transmitting the bacteria like that (although it is still a risk they take).
Eating cranberries is a good way of preventing and treating a UTI. I've heard pineapple and yogurt can also help and of course you should drink lots of water. However, if you notice the presence of pus in your urine you should get a doctor's opinion rather than rely on home remedies, as it might be something more serious, or quickly become more serious, and you should be on prescribed medication. |
|
lluviaporos
Post 1 |
A really good way of preventing UTIs is to urinate after sex. Often, simply from the movements people make during sex, bacteria manages to get up into the urethra, and from there to the bladder, where they cause infections. This infection can then be passed back and forth between partners, with each one re-infecting the other unless both are put on medication at the same time. If you regularly urinate as soon as possible after you have finished sex, it flushes out the bacteria. Although, unfortunately, some women are so prone to UTIs they get them all the time no matter what they do. |
