Urinary tract infection

Causes  of UTIs

UTIs occur when the urinary tract becomes infected, usually by bacteria. In most cases, bacteria from the gut enter the urinary tract through the urethra.

This may occur when wiping your bottom or having sex, for example, but often it's not clear why it happens.

The following may increase your risk of getting a UTI:

conditions that obstruct your urinary tract, such as kidney stones
difficulty emptying your bladder fully
using a contraceptive diaphragm or condoms coated in spermicide
diabetes
a weak immune system from chemotherapy or HIV , for example
a urinary catheter (a tube in your bladder used to drain urine)
an enlarged prostate gland in men

Women may be more likely to get UTIs because their urethra is shorter than a man's and is closer to their anus (back passage).

Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018

Articles for urinary tract infection

Introduction

Find out about urinary tract infections (UTIs), including what the symptoms are, when to get medical advice and how they're treated.

Symptoms  of UTIs

Infections of the bladder  (cystitis) or urethra (tube that carries urine out of the body) are known as lower UTIs. These can cause: a need to pee more often than usual pain or

When  to get medical advice

It's a good idea to see your GP if you think you might have a UTI, particularly if: you have symptoms of an upper UTI (see above) the symptoms are severe or getting worse the symptoms haven't

Treatment  for UTIs

UTIs are normally treated with a short course of antibiotics. Most women are given a three-day course of antibiotic capsules or tablets. Men, pregnant women and people with more serious sym

Causes  of UTIs

UTIs occur when the urinary tract becomes infected, usually by bacteria. In most cases, bacteria from the gut enter the urinary tract through the urethra. This may occur when wipi

Preventing  UTIs

If you get UTIs frequently, there are some things you can try that may stop it coming back. However, it's not clear how effective most of these measures are. These measures include: avoiding p

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