Urinary tract infection + MCU

jesline, if you read the old postings in this thread, there was another mommy who also had same 'advice' from KKH - that MCU is not required.

Which is puzzling to me - cos my 1st PD immediately advised MCU upon UTI was diagnosed. The 2nd PD then told us to do DMSA when the MCU results showed reflux - to test whether there is kidney scarring.

Both MCU and DMSA can be stressful for bb and parents but bb have short memories so not to worry too much.

For DMSA, they will inject a radioactive dye (thru vein in hand). It takes about 1 hour for the dye to travel to kidney. then bb is put under a machine to scan. if your bb can be sedate, then that's best so he/she wouldn't be scared
 


thanks for the info, mission. like you lor, i'm puzzled too abt DMSA over MCU, but since my PD ok it too, i think i will let my bb go ahead with the DMSA, thereafter will see doc for review and we shall see what's the results and what further advice she will give.

for DMSA, the nurse told us bb got to "fast" few hrs before the test and yes she'll be sedated which i tot quite scary and very poor thing for a small bb!
 
Hi junior2008, erm, I dun know of other ways to collect urine for bb... mine is boy. it gets easier when they are older and toilet-trained - then can collect the urine directly in a sterile bottle.

for my son's condition, we saw a PD who is specialist in urology. pls PM me if you like his contact details.
 
Hi,my son is 11 months old now.He had UTI a month back. E Coli bacteria was detected in the urine test. He was on antibiotic cefalcor (brand name - Distaclor) for 9 days.After 3 days of finishing his antibiotic course we went for his urine tests again and reports came out to be negative.Then after a week of the tests been done, he suddenly got high fever 39.5 C. Gave him paracetamol which lowered the fever. For around 10 days after every 2-3 days he used to get fever around 38 C.
Again his urine tests were done (dip stick and culture) but both came out to be negative. Stool test was also negative. He was given antibiotic called augmentin again for 7 days as his PD could not determine anything from the tests. The day he finished his medicine we took him to a doctor in KK. She prescribed anitbiotic called cephalexin 7.2ml once daily for a month and did the kidney ultrasound for my son.Ultrasound report came out to be ok.
Initially we didnt started the antibiotic as the dosage and duration was high but again on last saturday he got fever around 38 C which made us put our son on antibiotic again.

Is he having UTI still though the reports are all normal? Is it ok to give so many antibiotics?
 
Arti, since urine culture is negative then unlikely to be UTI. But it is strange why he keeps having fever. Do seek doctor's opinion. when they cannot determine the cause, i guess it's safest to give a wide spectrum antibiotic to try and 'kill' the virus... did they do any blood test?
 
Hi,
my girl 10 mth old had UTI 2 weeks ago , seen by KK doctor. She was given cephalexin on 10 days. Kidney scan is scheduled to be 2 mth later. My baby girl is on TBF since new born. She don't like to drink water. Is tat why she has UTI?Now I start to force feed her water using spoon, syringe. Hope tat UTI will not come back again. 6
 
Yes, he had undergone blood test 5 times....his neutrophills have come down really low and his C Reactive Protien was high.
Recently we gave him cephalexin for another 14 days as suggested by doctor. Currently we are observing him to see if the fever returns.This is the second week after his antibiotics have been stopped.No fever yet.The only thing is today he had little blood in his stool.
 
hi Arti, hope your boy's condition can be diagnosed correctly and to find the cause of the infection. I'm not familiar with those results of his blood test, but do let the PD advise. If need be, should seek 2nd opinion. The blood in stool : could it be due to hard stool? if yes, it's still ok.

taurusmum, i don't think not drinking water is a direct cause of UTI. of cos good to drink plenty of water daily. i used to give my baby a small bottle of water with mixed with a bit of gripe water (to prevent colic) daily. it's sweet and the baby will just finish it. not sure if u wanna do this too.
 
hi ladies,

havent been here for awhile, been very busy with 2nd baby. little baby had a bout of fever last week. i was so paranoid that it's the UTI thing. my eldest son has it (grade 3) so chances of little baby getting it is higher than norm.

so far he hasnt had any high fever or show any symptom yet but i'm so paranoid!! one son going thru it is bad enuf.
sad.gif
 
hi liewb, can understand your anxiety too. Hope the younger son recovers asap!

just wondering, would you consider circumcision for the baby? A PD did suggest doing it for my boy but now that he's 3YO+, I cannot bear to put him thru it. Would rather do it when he was just a baby and cannot walk/run around
 
We stopped the antibiotics of our son and it had been almost 3 weeks.No fever has come yet.We did his blood test recently and his neutrophills have dropped down to 0.08% which is very low. Is it that when a baby has UTI , the neutrophills drop down to large extend. If yes, how long does it take them to recover
 
mission...circumcision?? why would PD suggest that? my PD never mention it. we're only going thru the routine quarterly urine test & semi annual kidney scan now.

so far baby2 has been good so i'm crossing my fingers.
 
hi liewb, for my son, he still has ecoli detected during the routine urine test. But he has no fever - which means no infection. So PD advises it's better (cleaner) to do circumcision. Considering to do it during Dec holidays.
 
hi mission.. ic. do you give ur boy yogurt? i heard that it could be good for kids with UTI. not sure if it's true. i'm gonna give my boy soon, figure no harm.. yogurt should be find.
 
hi liewb, yes, my boy does take yogurt. it was also recommended by PD to eat yogurt. No harm anyway - kids like yogurt and it's calcuim!
happy.gif
 
Hi mummies,

may i know if stopping of antibiotic after taking for almost 2yrs will cause the child to have lower immunity?
 
hi littlefire, i think immunity really depends on individual so may not have an answer to whether antibiotics will lower one's immunity. I did ever ask PD about effects of long-term antibiotics (my kid was on trimethoprin for 2.5 years) - and he answered that so far, there are no ill-effects known and assured me it should be ok.
 
Hi mission,

thanks for your reply. I stopped my ds antibiotic abt 3mths ago and since he has been sick for almost every other week. Fever, flu, cough etc. I had asked his pd if the antibiotic has something to do with his recent weak immunity but he didnt really think so.
But he is sick so frequent that i am getting very worried for him
 
hi littlefire, it may be other reasons why your child is falling sick. E.g. virus spreading around in sch/cc, or the weather. U could try and boost his immunity using chinese herbs or vitamins?
 
hi mummies

anyone's child has fever every now because of UTI despite on long term antibiotics?
my boy is having fever again. Sigh.
 
hi mico, my PD mentioned before that this will be called breakthrough UTI. Your boy may have developed resistance to the antibiotics...

Perhaps you can discuss with PD for further advise.
 
Hi all, my boy has just gone thru the mcu scan n found tt he has reflux, grade 1. PD advise feeding him antibiotics, cephalexin 3ml per night for the nxt 2 yrs. But will review every 4 mths.

Is it true tt the condition will correct by itself as he grows older? Wat if it doesn't?

Which brand of yogurt n where to buy fr? Also heard tt cranberry juice cAn help prevent uti too. Where to find cranberry juice for babies?

My boy is almost 9 mths old.
 
Dear ALL mummies,i am new here n first time mum. need your advise too. my bb had UTI while she is 3 mths n admitted to kk , she then continue wit antibiotic cephlexin for 3 months after discharge, she continue wit ultrasound after that and it's normal. Dr said need do DMSA on april, and she need continue the antibiotic for another 2 months too. we are worried to take such long on antibiotic. and decided to stop it during cny . After a week ,she accidentally fell down from bed abt 2.5f(kind of storage bed and quite high. 2 days later she had high fever, 1st dr said she had "some" urine tract infection n need take back antibiotic, we see another dr in raffles the day after, and the urine test is clear, n urine culture shown negative. i am confusing n worry. We ask dr how come 2 test result can be different, is it becos of we continue the antibiotic on the previous day? dr said if still have infection ,the white blood sell wil show something even we start taking the antibiotic for 3 times ,and he also mention why KK never advise for MCU instead.
i am confusing, shd my bb go for another urine test? Is it possible she had fever becos of fell down from bed? shd she go for dmsa or mcu?
my hb was prefer to stop the antibiotic as he think it shd be clear, and not to go for the DMsa .
I am worried and don’t know shd I continue the antibiotic or probiotic, becos my DR said if she taking the antibiotic, they is no point to take probiotic, as it wil kill all good bacteria.
Can I replace just the probiotic withtout taking the antibiotic. Any of you stop the antibiotic? Pls give me yr advise… tqvm!!!
 
To first_born, for my case, my boy first had grade 4 reflux and after 2.5 years, it is now only grade 1. We have stopped the antibiotics as grade 1 is considered mild. He is fine now.

I think you don't have to worry too much for now.
happy.gif


Re yogurt : any brand should be fine. I doubt cranberry juice helps much as in our cases, as it's the reflux problem causing the UTI. Think cranberry juice helps more for adults?
 
To Lis : I am also puzzled why KK says to do DMSA instead of MCU. Think you are not the only one in this forum who has highlighted this.

My PDs (at pte hosp) had advised to do MCU - to determine if there is reflux. If there is reflux, then to do DMSA to determine if there is kidney scarring.

I think you should find a doc that you trust and follow his advice.

As for antibiotic vs probiotic : i think these are 2 different things. doubt you should replace probiotic and skip the antibiotic. Antibiotics is given by doc and should finish the course. Probiotics is like yakult (right?) and I think it's more like vitamins - good to take but not essential...
 
Yes, agree with mission. I also was advised by KK doctor (senior consultant) to do DMSA instead of ICU...dunnno why.. but my PD (at pte hosp) advised me to do MCU. in the end, I did MCU and didnt do DMSA. well, thanks God, my gal has no reflux and now she's fine, no more antiobiotics...

Btw, any mother knows, why kiddo has bad breath (smells like acidic).. just worry- is there any corellation with the kidney or why? coz i've brush her teeth but still she has it.. puzzled...
 
lis,

Yr bb should be taking the probiotic after the full course of antibiotic is finished. Yr doc is right abt not taking probiotics during the course of antibiotics, as all good and bad bacteria will be killed, so no point taking probiotic while yr bb is still on antibiotics. Taking probiotics when the course of antibiotics is finished is to replenish the good bacteria in the intestines, and to keep the ratio of good, bad bacteria and yeast in balance. When the good bacteria are killed, the likelihood of yeast overgrowth is high. It is also to prevent yeast infection from occurring. Hope this helps.

dpand
Bad breath with acidic smell is related to the stomach, the stomach could be too acidic. You can see a chinese physician to tiao yr child's stomach. My gal also has bad breath, now it's gone after she is on chinese medicine. If you need chinese physician's contact, you can pm me as I hv 2 physicians to recommend.
 
Thanks , mission, dpand, and ping ping for yr advice,
I have called KK this morning , asking whether they will want us to do mcu if the dmsa is ok ? Thye answer was “it depends” ..but she said will ask dr to call again.

I was planning to do it in private, I check with the Dr in raffless, they only can do mcu becos don have the facilities to do dmsa, I think may be this is the reason why private only advise to do mcu??

MY bb cant get insurance as the report from the KK hospital want her to do a further test on dmsa. My another concern is the charges.

dpand,
do you mind to tell me where u did the mcu and how much is the charges, and which dr? after the mcu, yr bb stop the antibiotic immediately?
 
Hi Ping ping,
Thanks, I've pm u
happy.gif


Hi Lis,
I did the MCU for my gal at Mt. Elizabeth. My PD is fm Kinder Clinic in paragon. Both my sis in law and me going to her clinic, and she also treated my nephew's UTI earlier on (his case i think quite severe as he was admitted to hospital, while my gal was not). u can pm me for her details if u want.

yes, after the MCU, which the result is out already in abt 1 hr, then consult to the PD, as there;s no reflux, on the same day she told me can stop the antibiotic alredy
happy.gif
relieved....

the charges i cant remember exactly, but i think around $180-$200 (my gal has the sedation)... it was done last year. U can call to Mt. E (x ray dept if im not mistaken) directly to find out abt the exact charges. Hope ur bb get well soon and no reflux. Pray
happy.gif
 
Hi dpand, thansk for the details, it is cheap..
i received call from dr. she said if dmsa ok, then v can stop antibiotic immediately.according to her, dmsa can only be done after 4-6 month from UTI..that'y we hav to do it in april..and have to wait 2 weeks for result.
anyone know when can do mcu after the infection? dmsa or mcu cause less pain? the charges in kk for dmsa is 400 plus, our rate will be base on foreigner rate, so is more expensive.
not sure shd i do it in private or kk? as another concern is the staff doing it in kk mostly junior dr?
i Hope everthing ok and we can stop the antibiotic soon..
 
Hi lis, since you are paying foreigner rate in KK, then why not switch to pte hosp instead? I'm really puzzled why need to do dmsa without mcu...

for my boy, we scheduled the mcu abt 2 weeks to 1 months after the UTI episode (i cannot rem exactly). I think hv to finish course of antibiotics then do urine culture test to determine no infection, then can proceed with mcu.

DMSA was done a few months later after he was diagnosed with reflux as the PD felt it's better to check if kidneys are scarred. This was done at Glen E. I can't remember the cost - maybe ard $500... MCU should be lower.

For my boy, he 'suffered' more during the DMSA. During MCU (when he was 5 months old), he was sedated so it's nothing. MCU is more invasive becos they inject some stuff thru his penis into the bladder. Then he has to pee it out. I didn't go in with him.

For DMSA, he was not sedated then cried a LOT. cos scared, I think. He was given some chemical thru vein in hand. waited 30 min. Then put under a machine to "scan". the scan took like 30 mins and he kept crying... We were allowed to be in with him for this.
 
Hi Mission, Thanks for sharing, really apreciate it...
as both of us are PR, and my bb pr status still pending for approval, it;s been taking for more than 5 monhts.
it was nightmare for us since she admmited to KK in NOV, she was only 3 months that time, we hav to pay higher rate, and cant even get her insurance till now, becos the report form kk stated "need further test on dmsa on april", so the insurance company rejected us till the test show clear. we did ask whether we can do it in private hospital, the dr told us, if we sent to private, and if there is anything, they will still refer back to kk, and by that time , they will will not accept us to back kk..

can i have yr opinion base on the following??
1. if we do it in private hospital,we shd do MCU not DMSA.
2. if the MCU ok, we still need do dmsa ?
3. The insurance compnay will still accept us as they have the previous record "need furhter test on dmsa"?

Thanks in advance !!
 
Hi Lis

I bought his medisave insurance when he was 2 months old. He was admitted to KKH for UTI when he was 3 months old. After ultrasound was fine, the PD discharged him.
I then bought other policies (life, accident) from prudential without any increase in premium even though I declared his UTI.

Subsequently, he had recurrent high fever in Dec and UTI was detected again. KKH arranged for MCU in Feb after UTI and DMSA is going to be done in August.

The doc that discharged my boy after the ultrasound was a PD. My current docs are just registras. Perhaps registras at KKH will do MCU then DMSA whereas PDs at KKH with more experience sometimes request for DMSA.

My boy is doing DMSA because he is grade 4 on the left and grade 2 on the right (results from MCU)

MCU was done without sedation. KKH told me that sedation for DMSA will be done via oral medicine.
 
lis,

for my experience, the PDs recommended MCU. I cannot say that it's becos pte hosp, then they say to do MCU.

maybe u can insist on MCU at KKH (looking at mico's example)?

imho, if mcu is ok, there is no need for DMSA.

re insurance, I also couldn't get any insurance for my boy till he was 3 years old. when he had UTI, we tried to get the insurance but after MCU result in 2006, the company cancelled the policy. it was only last year when we did another MCU which showed his reflux is only grade 1, then we could get the insurance.

I think for now, you should focus on doing MCU to determine if got reflux or not. If no, the reports will be sufficient for insurance. If yes, then it can't be helped - then let doc advise how control the reflux issue.
 
thank you both of yr sharing.. i have more clear picture now. since my bb UTI,we are so worry abt her, n after due consideration i tendered n decided to be full-time mummy.. really hope we can end the antibiotic soon.Thank you all mummy n wish all bb grow up healthily.
 
I have checked with kk, asking why dmsa was recommended but not MCU, the reason is dmsa less radiation, n allow us to go for mcu if we want.
we decided to go for MCU in private hospital, i tried call radlink after seeing teh recommendation from the forum, but dr anne tan will be away til end of this month.dpand, may i know where u did the mcu?

KK told me MCU cant hav sedation, becos bb need to be awake? my bb is very active i think it's difficult for her to do while she is awake.
If mcu result ok, is that mean no scaring? mean no need do dmsa?
if we go private, think v shd go back to kk to review the result?
 
re MCU, my boy first did it under sedation when he was 5 months old. It was very smooth.

The 2nd time he did MCU was 3 YO - at this age, it was recommended not to sedate him. He cried a lot cos he was scared. You may want to discuss further with KK doc.

Yes, if MCU results is fine, then shouldn't need dmsa. But since KK can let u do MCU, why not just do at KK?

There's no problem who reviews the result. The x-ray dept will write a letter along with the x-rays and you can bring them to any doc who can inteprete them.
 
hello - glad to have found this thread where mummies are sharing their experiences.

My 5 month old boy had a bad bout of UTI about a month back. 1st day of fever, we thought it was teething. 2nd day of fever, thought its flu, only 3rd day we bring PD, then realized its UTI. The urine sample was cloudy and bacteria count was high. He has since recovered from that infection with antibiotics. (But i worry if the delay in treatment has affected him)

On monday, we brought him for the MCU at KKH with no sedation. Poor boy was crying, but i think he was more frightened being bounded to the fixture than the pain (if he's in pain, his crying is typically a few octaves higher..
happy.gif
). Procedure was done in 40 mins. When he came out, poor boy was so tired that he slept on daddy's shoulders almost immediately. In a way, i tell myself i need to be brave, even though the procedure seems very scary. If i'm frightened, my son can sense it and become more fearful. As parents, for the good of our child, we need to grit our teeth through the process cos prevention is better than cure. Come to think of it, we don't remember things that happen to us when we were 1 or 2 years old. While waiting outside, i saw a few newborns hooked up to oxygen tanks waiting for some scan, and i told myself to count my blessings.

Anyway, i'm going to receive the test results tomoro at Raffles. A quick call with the nurse revealed something like grade 2, but with bacteria infection... The nurse said better to review with the Dr tomorrow. I'm really keeping my fingers crossed and praying very hard.

Haven't bought any insurance and now i'm worried. Baby's medical is covered under hubby's company now as dependent. But with the history of VUR grade 2 and UTI, dunno if the premiums will be affected in future.

Lis: I'm puzzled cos you mentioned that Raffles only have mcu. Cos PD at Raffles hospital said they do not have the facilities for children and referred me to do MCU at KKH. Anyway costs at KKH came up to about $190 for me, not too sure for PR.

Oops, its a long post. sorry to bore you folks. Just letting off some thoughts that's been bottling inside. BTW, my husband is determined to have our boy circumcised. PD says it will reduce 60% of UTI recurrence. I'm hesistant again, but hubby says its better before boy is running about. Malays do it, americans do it, he did it, my brother did it... so he does not see any issue... haiz
 
SJ,
grade 2 is not too bad! u are right about counting one's blessings. I used to be very very worried. Now looking back (and having gone thru other experiences), i realised UTI/urine reflux isn't that scary afterall....

yes, would be good to do circumcision now while he's still a baby. i read on internet that this is this laser method - supposed to be better? I seriously considered circumcision last year but my boy was already 3YO. His urine test still has bacteria but no infection. PD says prob it's urine trapped in foreskin. But we really can't bear and just procastinated till now... :p
 
Mission,

I read your story from the earlier posts. Glad that your boy has recovered. It's really comforting and I shall use it as my inspiration.
happy.gif


I guess this UTI thing came as a shock to us. Initially, i was still quite relax cos i kenna UTI before and i thought that anti-biotics will do the trick. Then my PD started to draw picture, then say anti-biotics for 2 years, then surgery on worse case scenario... my jaw almost dropped to the ground lor. Now i feed him the medicine every night is like slaughtering him liao, cannot imagine doing it for the next 2 years.

Anyway, see what the Dr says tomoro. I guess Andre will be scheduled for the DMSA soon as well.

yea, i also really cannot bear to do the circumcision. seems very painful yah and it's irreversible. But seems like there are more pros than cons; i guess there's this mental block i need to physcho myself through.
 
Hi SJ, your kid hates to take medicine? Hopefully he can get used to it and cooperate with you soon. I find it wasn't that bad - my boy just took it nightly as a form of dessert lor... the med has to be placed in fridge. we also went for short stay-vacation in SG and brought it along with us by putting a small bottle of it in a thermos flask of ice.

ya, agreed that circumcision may seem more difficult than it really is. Babies have really short memories. Humans also have short memories so not to worry - we'll get over it. :p
 
Mission: The result is grade 2 VUR on the right side. Left side is ok. So results doesn't look too bad. But DMSA still needs to be scheduled just to make sure everything is ok. Dr says high chance of self-recovery. He suggested one year antibiotics while the old-school thinking will typically suggested 2 yrs.
 
Thanks mission..
and SJ, Great to know u guys here.
my bb just done the mcu at kk last friday without sedation, and we need to wait for the result till 6 april... hope everyting allrite n we can stop the antibiotic.think it is good to go for the test earlier, bb have been taking antibiotic for 4 months already.
r u seeing dr. tan at raffless ? you r rite that raffless do not hav the facilities, they will refer to other hospital. the nurse from raffles ask me to go back kk b'cos they hv our record there. at first , i am very reluctant to back kk ,dr from radlink advise us to go mount e see dr belinda before we really want to put her through this,also want to thanks mission after seeing his advise tht nite, we decided to follow the schedule to go kk lo. I am libra and always cant firm my decision, that day the test very smooth, it take only 20 mins, they said bb very cooperative and passed urine very fast.she cried for 10 mins, n can laugh after that. they charge 195, not sure they charge wrongly or nt, earlier was told 250-300 for foreigner rate, my bb not pr yet.fyi, mount e not allow parent to go in during the process, kk allow one parent to go in after they insert the tube(sorry, don know how to explain), while radlink allow both to go in for whole process....kk not allow sedation, but the rest yes. so u doing the dmsa at kk ? think only thing bad for kk is they cant tell result on same day, but private can..hope yr son recover soon..
 
Hi SJ, yep, grade 2 isn't that bad.
happy.gif
what antibiotics will your boy be taking. my kid took trimethodprin for ~2.5 years.

Lis : will pray for your bb results. great that the procedure was smooth and cost is reasonable. Do not worry unduly.
 
Hey Lis,

Yar, Dr Tan at Raffles Hospital. The results are typically out within 2-3 days. If you're worried, maybe you can call and ask the nurse the outcome of the scan? That's what i did cos i couldn't wait and they told me grade 2 over the phone. Of cos they couldn't describe more, but its just the grade i wanted to know. I find the nurses at Raffles quite friendly.

Mission: he is taking trimethodprin currently.(Actually quite smelly .. heehee). But I'm going back to my usual PD for the long term presciption.
 
thank you mission,
Hi sj, i did call this morning,mine is direct through kk, the helpline staff told me result need wait for 2 weeks, so my schedule on 6 is consider fast, this is the bad about kk compare to private lor. They also havent fix the dr we r going to see, each visit will be differrent dr. so i just wait nia...
 
yaya, thanks SJ for yr concern. the result came out to be normal and she can stop the antibiotic now..we are so happy
happy.gif
,
one thing i must share here, the dr told us that if we follow the schedule from the hospital to do the dmsa test, and there will be steven if the result come out to be ok, they will still want us to go for the mcu test during end of the year, which mean we stil cant get any insurance for my bb til then..
i am so glad that i have joined this forum , and get so much info from all mummies, especially a big big thank you to u, mission, becos of yr advise, we dont have to go through for the unnecessary test..,
Thanks to all mummies, wish yr kids stay healthy always ...
 

my gal got uti twice within 2mths so pd suggest doing mcu. the clinic asst told me that my dd need to fast 4hrs before the procedure, its rather difficult to do so. i think nobody mention abt fasting in this thread too!! pls advice!!!
 

Back
Top