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  • Recurring kidney infection. What the hell's wrong with me?
  • Bregante
    Full Member

    I’m fed up.

    It’s now 6 months since I started having kidney infections which came out of the blue. I have no previous history of kidney problems. In total I think I’ve had 7 or 8 doses of antibiotics and I’ve been hospitalised four times with high infection levels and temperature above 104deg. Other side effects are a constant urge to pee and a dull ache in my lower left side of my back. The worst part is uncontrollable shaking through the whole body (Rigor) which kicks in when the infection is particularly bad. I initially lost almost two stone in 6 weeks but that’s levelled off now.

    Ultrasound, Endoscopy (never again) and Nuclear Renograms have all come back clear. I don’t have cysts, stones or any kind of blockage (hydronephrosis) and at the moment my consultant has suggested I go back in three months to see how I am…..

    I did have an insect bite whilst out riding back in September which resulted in cellulitis in my left leg. I had a two week course of antibiotics and it was almost immediately after coming off these that the kidney problems started. I have repeatedly asked about this to my G.P, my consultant and the A&E staff who I’ve seen but all have dismissed this as a cause.

    Anyone aware of anything similar?

    thegeneralist
    Free Member

    You’ve got uriteric reflux. The valves between your bladder and kidneys are faulty and sometime urine gets up into your bladder and causes an infection.

    Perhaps.

    My son had it. Luckily he was in Germany when it occurred and they whisked him off to hospital, diagnosed it and filled him with antibiotics for 2 months and then preventetive antibiotics for the next 7 years.

    The girl across the road however wasn’t so lucky. She was in the UK so it took them about 2 years to work out what the problem was. So her kidneys are a bit fecked.

    Have they checked for reflux?

    poolman
    Free Member

    No but my mate with a similar condition as juanking started off with a kidney issue, that and acute tiredness. Had tests and revealed more serious issues. Deffo get full set of blood tests. Sorry if alarmist wishing you all the best.

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    Bregante
    Full Member

    I’ve had my bloods done poolman. Cancer was discussed and has been discounted. The consultant seemed confident that the Renogram would show some visible blockage in my left kidney so he just looked a bit flumoxed when it came back clear. No signs of tiredness. Quite the reverse in fact and in between bouts of infection I feel fine. I was out on the bike on Sunday for a decent 40 odd mile ride at pretty much my normal riding pace. Saying that though a few weeks earlier I did the same and by early evening I was being admitted for i.v antibiotics because I was in a bad way. The sheer speed it comes on is unbelievable.

    I’ve not heard of uriteric reflux thegeneralist. Will take a look, cheers.

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    Seems like they’re trying fairly hard to work you out

    Do you know if your infecting bacteria are the same in each episode, or differnet (even if same species isolated, how do they compare in terms of antibiotic sensitivity)?

    Did your docs have a squidge at your prostate while they were at it (the magic finger)?

    Has anyone asked you any awkward questions about your sex life?

    thegeneralist
    Free Member

    apparently it’s a bit genetic. Had to get number 2 checked out for it a few years back.

    Was very weird when it happened 11 years ago now. Took the 5 month old baby to the doctor as he seemed to have a cold. Bit of a fever and stuff. Didn’t seem much of an issue. The doctor took some samples and then sent us home. She phoned us up at home about 3 hours later to tell us to take him to the hospital immediately. Which we did.

    Bad times.

    Hope you get sorted.

    thegeneralist
    Free Member

    Sorry, what I meant to add (vaguely relevant) is that ever since then we’ve been told that if he has a fever but no sign of a cold we need to take him for a urine test.

    Bregante
    Full Member

    scaredypants. Apparently it’s not been the same bacteria each time. The antibiotics which worked first time hasn’t been used since but they seemed to have settled on the same one the last two or three times (can’t recall the name now as I’m not generally in a good place when it kicks in)

    They haven’t even discussed the prostate, although my father in law (retired pathologist) has suggested I go back to my GP to raise this.

    No awkward questions about my sex life either…

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    Apparently it’s not been the same bacteria each time

    to be fair to them, then, I can see why things don’t seem to fit: “Young” 😛 blokes with a normal renal tract don’t normally expect to get even unexciting UTIs as a one-off. If they’ve gone to all this trouble I can’t believe they haven’t ruled out reflux, but I guess you never know

    Same organism repeatedly might have made them think of prostate more than differing ones (If you did have bugs in there they’re fairly hard to wipe out so you can see repeated UTI).
    Is your bike saddle knob-friendly ? (as well as blood vessels, you’re potentially pressurising prostate and some of the plumbing while riding)

    (It’s good that they’re doing imaging etc. Not just to work out why – the infections can sometimes lead to damage, so they like to know whether there is any)

    IANAD (IAAPharmacist; registration details available on request – as they say)

    shermer75
    Free Member

    Sorry to hear about the repeated infections OP, they sound particularly nasty. My only advice is keep being proactive- asking around, getting second oppinions if your current consultant is truly stumped, that sort of thing. It’s your health, you won’t be given a second chance, so don’t be shy! 🙂

    Bregante
    Full Member

    I raised the possibility of some damage due to cycling pretty early on because I did a lot of riding (for me) in August and September including the Manchester 100 about ten days before these problems first started. I switched the saddle on my road bike to one with a channel/ cut out at the end of last year because it was at the back of my mind that this had been a cause. The vast majority of my riding is on the road these days but my last recurrence was after I’d been out on the MTB (hardtail, potentially not very “knob friendly” saddle now you mention it).

    mintimperial
    Full Member

    Jeez fella, you sound like an episode of House or something, I knew you were under the weather but I didn’t know it was that bad. I have no useful advice to offer, but I damn well hope you get sorted out soon. Take it easy and keep on banging on at the docs until they fix you.

    *positive vibes*

    Bregante
    Full Member

    Cheers Tom.

    welshfarmer
    Full Member

    Insect bite instantly makes me think of Lymes disease but guessing that would be too obvious??

    TiRed
    Full Member

    I’d be more interested in what the microbiologist has to say than the renal specialist. You have a uti and appear to have serially passaged ever increasing resistant strains. Did the infection die down and then come back with a vengeance? That was t!he selective killing and overgrowth of resistant strains. I had one of those last year but only one recurrence. Nitrofurontoin passaged resistant klebsiella pneumoniae, which was cleared by high dose amoxycilin and clavulanic acid. Ask for the microbiology reports. Especially the “MIC”: minimum inhibitory concentration. Which is a measure of resistance of a cultured strain.

    The urge to go is absolutely dreadful, isn:t it?x

    Bregante
    Full Member

    Welshfarmer – I asked about Lymes when I was first treated for cellulitis but apparently it’s been ruled out.

    No idea about any microbiology report and if it has been done it’s never been mentioned to me, so thanks for that. I’ll make a call to see how I go about seeing the Consultant before the next appointment in June!

    stumpyjon
    Full Member

    The reflux issue may be worth looking at. My son was born with it although they tend grow out of it in that case. He was on antibiotics until he was 4, luckily no infections apart from the one he picked up in hospital having some associated surgery 👿 His saving grace was he always drank a lot which the doctors recommended, help keep everything flushed through.

    poolman
    Free Member

    Ok well done on eliminating a much worse issue. Looks like you are in good hands though and some good advice on here. Healing vibes

    Bregante
    Full Member

    Just back from the consultants and it appears that TiRed was right. I seem to have a low level of infection which is difficult to kill off as it is deep in the bladder and apparently a week or 10 days of antibiotics is never going to wipe it out.

    There’s now a note on my records to say that when it returns I’ve to be prescribed a mega doseage of amoxicillin for a month which should kill it off. He wasn’t particularly clear on why I have to wait for it to come back – but I do.

    tjagain
    Full Member

    No point in having a huge dosage of antibiotics if there is no issue thats why they want you to wait I guess

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    Enterococcus ?

    I’m wondering why he’s waiting too – maybe needs a bit of inflammation to get to whatever he thinks is the “deeper” site of colonisation

    Drac
    Full Member

    Simple. You have no symptoms so it may be that it is going away so antibiotics would be uncessary. Hopefully that’s the case as they’re horrible things n

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    Simple. You have no symptoms so it may be that it is going away so antibiotics would be uncessary

    Uh huh 😕

    In total I think I’ve had 7 or 8 doses of antibiotics and I’ve been hospitalised four times

    [quote]Just back from the consultants … apparently a week or 10 days of antibiotics is never going to wipe it out[/quote]

    deadkenny
    Free Member

    Bregante – Member 
    Welshfarmer – I asked about Lymes when I was first treated for cellulitis but apparently it’s been ruled out.

    Ruled out in what way? Tested for it, or just dismissed as unlikely because “we don’t get lyme round here” which is how some GPs incorrectly react when asking about Lyme.

    Cougar
    Full Member

    Doesn’t Lyme’s have a fairly long incubation period anyway? Like, it’s years before you get any serious symptoms?

    footflaps
    Full Member

    They haven’t even discussed the prostate, although my father in law (retired pathologist) has suggested I go back to my GP to raise this.

    I had recurring kidney infections, or rather one which only cleared up when I was on antibiotics and then came right back a few days after the course finished. Was eventually diagnosed as Prosatitis, the Prostate was acting as an armour plated well of infection. Six week course of Cipro cleared it up…..

    Drac
    Full Member

    I read that scarerdypants thanks. Still stands why treat none symptomatic patients with a drug they are trying to limit.

    globalti
    Free Member

    I’m going to give up visiting the GP and just ask on STW in the future, folk on here know much more than my GP who, as far as I can see, diagnoses everything with a flow chart on his computer. You know he’s doing it when he stares at the screen and mutters: “Is the patient conscious?”

    deadkenny
    Free Member

    My GP rides bikes. I’d swear I saw him posting on STW for a diagnosis last time I was there.

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