Urinary tract infection + MCU

mission,

the kidney scan is to check for any swelling. the PD recommended a scan every 6mths coz swelling could be a sign that there is some infection or other complication. it's an ultra-sound, and doesnt take very long but it's not easy to get my boy to lay down for 5 mins for the scan.

good luck on the mcu. i hope your boy is ok and no longer has the reflux problem. all the best. keep us posted though.
happy.gif
 


Thanks, liewb! I hope the mcu will go smoothly - hope he doesn't get scared. I read he has to pee while lying on the table. dunno whether he can do it (either awake or sedated) cos he's now toilet-trained.
 
hi mommies, my boy went for MCU today. It was quite traumatizing for him, I guess. The nurse felt sedation might not work, so he went in awake. we could only remain out and heard him wailing v loudly - cos he couldn't urinate out for a long while! But the good news is : his urine reflux has gone down from Grade 4 to Grade 1! Praise the Lord!

This means he can be off the daily antibiotics! Just need to take the antibitics for another 3 days (in case MCU causes UTI). I'm really happy with the results as it is something i hv been praying for so long!
happy.gif
 
mission,
my gawk..so sorry that your boy has to go thru the procedure awake. but on the good side, this will probably be the last mcu, right?
happy.gif


congrats on the good results!! i hope when it's my boy's turn, his reflux will also be downgraded.
 
hi liewb, i think there is no choice but have to let the kid do the MCU awake. If we tried it while he's asleep and he gets startled & wake up, i think it is a greater shock to him... Yes, should be last MCU.

Hmm, I still have a bottle of trimethodprin unopened. Would you like if I give it to you free? If not, I'll give it back to the clinic. That time, I thot he may still need to cont the med, so I bought too much bottles.
 
mission,

so sorry to hear about the trauma your boy went thru during the MCU, but it's really good news that his UTI has downgraded! :D
 
Hi, my 4+ mth old baby recently had UTI. He was ok after 14 days of antibiotic. His kidney ultrasound scan was also fine. The pd recommended us to bring him for MCU and put him on low dosage antibiotic during this period when we are considering whether to put him through MCU.

As this is the first UTI that he contracted, I am very hesitant to let him go through MCU. The pd advised that even we do not go thru MCU, he should continue his antibiotic till ard 1 yr old. Are there any mummies here who also did not opt for MCU? Were your babies given long term antibiotic without the MCU results?

Does UTI always cause fever?
 
Yes UTI always causes very high fever, my gal's fever went up to 41 degree. Our pd says that only when the child has recurring UTI then need to send for MCU. Because my gal had hers at 3mth old and 11 mth old, MCU was ordered. It was a very painful session for us parents as we see her cry because we did not opt for sedation in case of side effects. Luckily results was ok.

For each UTI, my gal was only put on 1 dose of antibiotic after the urine culture confirms which type of antibiotics can combat the bacteria. After that 1 dose, no need to continue medicine. However we were advised to give her probiotics daily.
My goodness, antibiotics till 1 yo? If I were you, I will seek 2nd opinion from another pd. Antibiotics is no gd for young children, yours only 4 mth old. Pls check with another pd b4 you agree to this. BTW, my pd is a specialist on kidney and related issues so he knows alot about UTI.
 
My son was also asked to go for mcu after his first round of UTI at 3 mths. Unfortunately, he got another round after his mcu. However, we are glad we went ahead with the mcu coz he was found to have reflux grade 3 on both sides. He was put on long term antibiotics. Last yr he went thru another round of mcu. This time, one side no reflux, one side grade 1. He was taken off his antibiotics.

I can understand why you are hesistant abt putting your child thru MCU but that's the only way to detect if he has reflux. And if he really have, it's better to know and take the neccessary precaution. Coz with each round of UTI, there is a possiblity of scarring for the kidneys and such scarring are permanent.

My son's first UTI was more than 3yrs ago so there could be changes to the way they treat such cases. If you are really not sure of wat to do, perhaps you can get a second opinion.
 
yin, i also feel your PD is too kiasu to advise taking antibiotics till age 1 (without knowing if the bb really has reflux). maybe you should check with another PD...
 
Thanks for your advice. Yep, thinking of seeking more opinion first coz I also do not want to give him antibiotic for too long.
 
mission..sorry for the slow reply. for some reason, co put firewall up and i was not able to access this website and home pc broke down..*sigh

thanks for the offer but i've still got abt 5 bottles backup at home..ahahha..i'm typical kiasu mom. :p
 
so glad i found tis thread and reading the posts make me feel more informed and ready to put my daughter through DMSA if the doctor orders it when we see her next week. am going to kkh to see specialist after tis 2nd bout of UTI. just did the MCU last week and the results of tis invasive procedure determined tat my 8mth old daughter has bilateral grade 4 reflux. am very scared and shocked still... crossing my fingers for her to be put on medication only.
 
hi liewb, no prob! wah, u already hv 5 bottles! that's a lot. haha...

fariekim : dun worry! I comforted myself that in the worst case, just go for surgery which has a very high case of success.

To mommies with boys who has urine reflux : do u pull back the foreskin to do cleaning? I do that and now realised he has this condition 'phimosis'. Hmm... just wondering what the frequent pull back & clean could hv caused it. But for now, it's not serious and doesn't pose a problem.
 
mission, thanks for the comfort! me crossing fingers to see how it goes on wed.

abt the antibiotics, u know ah, the clinic labelled the bottle 'discard after 1 week' while the verbal instructions were to continuously let the child eat it every night. after 1 month, the antibiotics smell turned quite strong, and i was just wondering whether the medicine can really only last 1 week? called up the clinic and they told me to ignore label and continue feeding the kid. anyone can advise me?
 
fariekim, do you keep the antibiotics in the fridge? Which antibiotics do you use?

My PD advised me to put antibiotics in ziplock bag and then put in fridge. Cos the fridge may have raw stuff so better to use the ziplock bag
 
mission...i dun put the bottles in ziplock. think the nurse only told me to keep it refrigerated. i tell u, i super kiasu. plus 1 bottle only last abt 2wk, so 5 bottles is abt nice. :p

faeriekim...good luck on the test. i was totally unprepared for it when my boy's result came out. i mean i knew the risk but deep in my heart, i never consider he'll have it *sigh. so i tell ya, i cried in the doc office. seriously though, better to find out early.
 
mummies,

need advice, my gal had UTI when she was 13mths.Was given augmentin, then after 1 bottle, changes to soficlor ever since (she is now 17 mths). PD order her for ultrasound and MCU. Did Ultrasound, result Ok, but didnt do MCU yet.

Then I look for second opinion, brought her to nephrologist in KKH, was ordered to have DMSA instead of MCU, also to change the antibiotics into Co-TrimOXazole. She said, she will look thru the result of DMSA, if ok, she said can just stop the antibiotics and no need to go thru MCU, and just wait and see. I really confused...as why the PD asked for MCU, but didnt mention DMSA, but teh nephrologist said the opposite.

Which one shld I do actually, MCU(as per PD's advise) or DMSA (nephrologist's) as it was actually her first UTI (hope to be the last one too).
Any advise wld be appreciated. Thks alot

Thanks for any advise
 
hi dpand, MCU is to check the urine flux and if there is urine reflux and what is the degree of the reflux.

DMSA is using radioactive materials to check the functionality of kidneys and whether there is any scarring.

since it is 1st UTI, i think no need to do DMSA. You should do MCU first. if it is proven that there is reflux, then you can do DMSA to check if there is kidney scarring. E.g. if the MCU shows a worst-case scenario (i.e. bad reflux on both sides), then there is higher risk of kidney scarring.

Think you should question the KKH side again...
 
mission,
Thanks a lot for ur advice. really appreciate it. finally i decided to follow my PD's instruction to have Mcu at private hosp. just did it today n got the result 2 hrs later. thks God, hse has no reflux. really thks God...so relief. pd said can stop antibiotic after tomoro.

Still hold the appt for DMSA at KKH. maybe i will just cancel it since my pd never instruct that, also as u said, no need DMSA if MCu result ok rite?

KKH nephrologist said, it's old method for MCU, nowadays they do DMSA better, as radiation much lesser than mcu. well, i guess i need not back to kkh again? mission, if u were me, u wont back to them n do the dmsa rite? i dare not say to my pd that i visited kkh for 2nd opinion, afraid pd thinks i dont trust, hehe...though it's not tat i dont trust, just wana make sure i did the rite thing for my dd.

Thks alot!
happy.gif
 
hi dpand, what i hear is based from my PDs too. I think you can be open about it and just ask your PD again for his opinion about KKH & DMSA.

We first saw PD 1 then switched to PD 2 regarding my son's urine reflux. I openly informed PD1 that we are seeing PD2. PD1 was fine. I still go to PD1 occasionally and just check with her on some of PD2's decisions. It's ok! I dun think doctors are so petty!

Anyway, congrats that your DD has no reflux!
happy.gif
that's great!
 
Mission,

Thanks alot for ur support and advise
happy.gif
, ya, u're rite, i think i shld check with the pd abt this dmsa and kkh opinion.

Hope ur son is OK too now
happy.gif


Thks God, Im so happy my dd need not take the antibiotic anymore
happy.gif
thks..thks
happy.gif
 
i wished i found this thread earlier. My son had UTI at 2 months old. PD's instructions were to let him be on antibiotics for 3 months, then go for MCU. But i also dun wish he eat so much antibiotics cos he's such a young baby. So PD said can arrange for MCU 2 mths later, which I've scheduled to be at end of jun. Now keeping my fingers crossed. It's a painful process to see yr child being sedated and going thru the procedure.
 
Hi all...

i would like some advise here..Firstly,how do you mums in the first place were made known of UTI/reflux occuring to ur babies/child? I mean, did u all suspected it or pd/dr diagnosed it? Is it a standard practise for dr to conduct urine test on baby/child if he/she has a fever?

I suspected my boi contracting uti cos he has repeated fever (once every month - from age 2 mths.he is now 5 mths). but the last visit to kkh they only did a urine strip on him n it was tested negative. Tested negative means he didnt contracted UTI or his urine is free from bacteria? I didnt ask at that time cos i was blur. Do i exactly have to request for some sort of culture test to find out whether he has uti or reflux. I am so sorry to bother u all.. I m really in a fix..

thnks all
 
hi faz, for my boy, he had high fever at 5 weeks old - for infants to have high fever with no other symptoms, it was standard procedure to test for UTI.

I think doctors usually treat based on symptoms. Fever with no other symptoms could be UTI or maybe just viral fever. If there are other symptoms like sore throat, runny nose then it is unlikely to be due to UTI.

Are there other symptoms when your boy had fever? if there is a rash after 3-4 days of fever, it could be roseola (fake measles) - which is very common for young babies. my kid got it twice.

since urine strip test is -ve, it is unlikely to be UTI. quite rare for -ve urine strip if there is UTI.

For your son's fevers, was he given antiobiotics to recover or it went off by itself?

Don't worry too much - IMHO, i doubt it's UTI. i think UTI would require specific antibotics.
 
hi mission

appreciate ur kind advice.For the first time he had his fever,there were no runny nose, cough etc. But his 2nd n 3rd episode was accompanied by those. He was given augmentin n para for his first episode but para n nose drops for his 2nd n 3rd episode.

He didnt contracted any rashes thou and normally the fever will subside after 2nd day of medication.

U sure that if urine strip is tested -ve means less chance of contracting UTI?

Ur boy has totally recovered is it?was it uti or reflux?

i really apologised for having to trouble u mission. Thnks for ur help!
 
hi faz, i think no case for worry - since 2 out of 3 episodes, he had symptoms so it's not uti. If it's uti, the fever wouldn't go away w/o antibiotics.

my boy had 3 cases of UTI and was diagnosed with reflux subsequently. now he is 3 YO and the level of reflux has very much improved.

yes, usually when my boy has fever, we request to do urine strip test and if -ve, then no need to do urine culture test.

Hmm, usually bb may start falling sick frequently after 6 months - when they lose their natural immunity & become exposed to viruses. but in a way, this is building up him own immunity.
 
Thnks loads mission

i guess my son is the sort who easily falls sick..n worst every month. Keep my fingers crossed its not any other illness hes suffering frm. I just have to braven up myself each time he falls sick..so tormenting..hais..being a mum..mum..not easy huh..

Wah ur son is a big boi now..so does he still go back to do follow up or still under antibiotics daily?

i will need ur advices and others still pertaining to this hee.. Thnks dear.
 
Faz

If u're really not sure if it is UTI, Watson sells UTI urine test strips in a box. I forgot how much, but certainly cheaper than the doc's. Try that out.

My boy is going for MCU next week. Keeping my fingers crossed!
 
faz, u are welcome - ya, this is part of motherhood. dun worry, it gets easier when he's bigger. My boy is now off the daily antibiotics. we'll probably do routine urine culture test every 3 months.

lemontree : will pray for your kid's MCU results. as he is still young, it's good he can be sedated. dun worry - he prob doesn't feel a thing. my kid endured 2nd MCU at age 3 - at his age, sedation doesn't work... it was heart-pain to hear him howl while i can only wait outside... it doesn't hurt him but he was very scared.
 
So glad i found this thread! My 5.5 mths old baby girl is downn with UTI and we have to bring her in for MCU on Monday of which i am totally dreading after witnessing her crying her hearts out in A&E last Sunday due to high fever.. Urine test conducted proved that her urine was contaminated...
sad.gif
Hope she doesnt have urine reflux
 
misson:thnks again..yeah i cant wait wen hes abit bigger..at least easier to handle..or i may be wrong too hee..Blessed ur son..he doesnt need those antibiotics anymore..i guess he has learnt now hw to pee properly hence recovering. ;-)

Lemontree:will pray for ur kid too..hope all turn ok for u ya..
 
Cecilia: wen did dr diagnosed her with uti?if its today u mentioned ur girl has to go for MCU, i will pray that all goes fine for her.

Was the urine test u mentioned just urine strip or culture?
 
Hi Faz - We went for the MCU yesterday and unfortunately, she has have grade 2 reflux diagonosed by the Radiologists but her PD thinks it looks more like grade 3 -4 on one side..
sad.gif

Apparently results from the urine culture shows that she has e coli and its resistant to most of the antibiotics available including Augmentine that she is on now.. But so far she is responding well to Augmentine so will have to wait and see...
 
tara's mum

i m sorry to hear that *hugs*..but at least its grade 2 as diagnosed..hw long does ur gal need to take augmentin till?btw,wic hospital did u go to?i went to KKH the last time.
 
Thanks Faz... Tara is on a 10 days augmentine course and ends this Thursday.. So hopefully all goes well after that.. will have to wait and see what her pd says..

For MCU, i was referred by the pd to go to Radlink in Paragon and the tests were done by Dr. Anne Tan.. She is nice
 
hi tara, grade 2 is still considered mild reflux so dun worry too much. it can be controlled by antibiotics. my son was on trimethodprin from 5mths to age 3 YO. e-coli is the nasty bacteria which happened for him too. Do discuss with PD on next course of action. For grade 2, I heard there's a good chance the child will improve on her own over time.
happy.gif
 
Can i check if anyone's baby has diapers with orange/pink tinged pee and UTI? upon searching on the internet, usually this orange/pink spots in diaper are termed as crystals which is a sign that baby is dehydrated or sometimes also normal. but my PD says that my baby has UTI because he saw the pink/orange spots in diaper. can anyone help?
 
hi seahorse, i have not seen orange/pink urine for my boy before. Did the PD do tests to confirm that it's UTI e.g. urine dipstick test? To confirm UTI, i think usually have to do urine lab test to determine the exact bacteria.

UTI is easily treated through antibiotics. Is your baby given any?
 
Hi Mission - Thanks for sharing your experience and for the reassurance that she will be fine.. The only problem is that the radiologist diagonosed it as grade 2 reflux but her PD thinks its 3 to 4 on one side of the kidney and 2 on the other side.. Today is her last day of anti-biotics and hope all will be fine.. Cant bear to see her suffer .. Does your baby get very bad diaper rash from taking the antibiotics?

Hi Seahorse - My baby didnt have the orange/pink spots as you mentioned. When they collected her urine, it was very cloudy even to the naked eyes, so immediately the pd says there is urine infection before the urine culture test was being done..
 
tara's mum : what does the PD advise to do next? for my son, he was diagnosed as grade 4 but a 2nd PD feels it's a 4.5 (close to 5). we went to 2 PDs to seek opinion. in any case, my son was put on preventive antibiotics (the 2nd PD prescribed a higher dosage than 1st PD). thank God there was no UTI breakthrough. we waited for 2 years+ and his condition is just a grade 1 now.

hmm, i don't quite recall my kid had bad diaper rash. i dun think antibiotics directly cause diaper rash - it may cause slight diarrhea and you have to be careful to change diapers quickly and apply nappy cream. does your bb has diarrhea? it could be her first experience with the antibiotics - i think her body should adapt soon.
 
thanks for the reply! yes, baby has been for the tests and confirmed UTI. but PD also noticed the orange/pink spots.just wondering if its related... going for MCU soon...

i do hope its nothing too serious...
 
Hi Mission - Doc says since she is reacting quite well to Augmentine so far, will wait and see how she copes from tomorrow onwards as today is the last day of her antibiotics course.. But should she have fever again, pd will treat with stronger antibiotics + jab & then she will be put on preventive antibiotics ...

Great to hear that you kid's condition improved - thats good news and also hope for me!

Tara had quite bad diarrhoea from it and she has ecezema so the pd says - the antibiotics does make her diaper rash worsen.. So she is butt naked @ home during the day now.. hee
 
yes! baby does seem to have diaper rash recently! thanks for pointing that out... now i end up putting powder coz i thought it was the creams that caused the rash!
 
tara's mum,

its good to hear tara has cleared her 10 days augmentine course.Frm today onwards we'll just have to pray her fever episode will not come back.

Oh u saw Dr Anne Tan at Radlink Paragon?me too..at that time she was the one conducting ultra sound on my son when he was 6 weeks old..very pretty dr i must say hee..Ur pd must b one in Mt e?

Seahorse,

i think best u dun put powder,cos like my mum said just leave the rash dry on its own.i tried also putting powder,but it seemed to have worsen. have u schedule for MCU yet?

My son is still awaiting his result for UTI/reflux frm KK.till now they have not called or anything. The dr said frm the last visit,if no calls frm them means good news.cross my fingers.
 
Faz - yah, Tara's PD is Dr Belinda @ Mt E.. Yap, Dr Anne Tan is very attractive and looks really young also! Hope all will turnout well from today onwards.

Seahorse - many docs and nurses have adviced against using powder on baby as you never know if they are allegic to it or have asthma.. reason being they did a test and found that many times, the powder particles gets stuck in the lungs of the little ones.. so i still have mine brand new in a box! brought it before i was advised not to use it..
 
hi fellow mummies

glad to find this thread... my gal had UTI when she was 5mths old and was on anti-b for 6 weeks after 2-days anti-b drip in KK. thereafter doc recommended she does a DMSA (scheduled in sep) but she said MCU not necessary (unless UTI is in the family history or is a recurring prob). i sought opinion from my PD and he said its ok to do DMSA but was wondering why MCU not recommended instead.

Can anyone share what's the difference b/w these 2, and the procedures involved in both DMSA and MCU? I have the impression that both tests seem rather scaring and could be tramatising for bb. is that the case?

thanks!
 
Hi Jesline,

I know how you feel cos i felt exactly the same way when i fd this thread! There is a lot of info on DMSA and MCU in this thread but to summarize:

Basically MCU is used to test if the baby has urine reflux and thats the culprit for causing the urine infection in most cases like my baby's

DMSA is used to determine is there is any scaring caused by the urine reflux in the kidney.

I guess different doc has different opionion but it is not true that MCU is necessary only in the case where UTI is in the family history or is a recurring prob as mentioned by the KK doc .. This is becos there isnt any family history in my baby's case and this is the first time she has urine infection.. We were lucky in the sense that we seek help very early when she was down with unexplained high fever and thus treatment was administered and there is no scarring to the kidney...

MCU is invasive in the sense that they have to insert a tiny tube into the pee hole and then fill the bladder with dye and wait for the baby to pee.. the whole process takes less than 20 mins.. of course it hurts to see the baby cry but i know it was for the better cos we needed to know if she had urine reflux.. Early diagnosis of urine reflux has much better chance of recovery..
 


hi tara's mum - thanks for sharing the info... then in this case, is it better for my gal to undergo the MCU test oso?

i think the KK doc mentioned something like MCU tests nowadays not so common liao, but from your exchanges it seems many of your bb undergo MCU, and not DMSA. i'm rather confused
sad.gif


anyone knows how is DMSA conducted?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

L
Am I pregnant?
Replies
1
Views
2K
joysl82
J
L
Treatment for Urinary Tract Infection in Babies
Replies
1
Views
2K
mummyyan
M

Back
Top