Exclusive: UTI Without Symptoms - Can A Person Have UTI And Not Know About It?

New Delhi: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common infections that we come across. It tends to affect a large number of people. Women tend to be at much higher risk of getting a UTI. It is found that 50-60% of women might have an episode of UTI at least once in their lifetime. A major concern is that, amongst the women who get UTI, around 30% might have to face recurrent episodes of UTI later on. These repeated UTI episodes can impact the quality of life and have potentially serious adverse long-term health damage. Dr. Md Taif Bendigeri, Senior Consultant Urologist, Asian Institute of Nephrology and Urology Hyderabad shares with Zee News Digital how a person can be affected by UTI and not know about it.

Most of the episodes of UTI present with classical symptoms of a burning sensation while passing urine, pain while urinating, increased frequency of urination, foul-smelling urine, pain in the lower abdomen, blood in urine, fever, etc. However, in some scenarios, the UTI might be present in the person without creating any noticeable symptoms. It is termed as asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB). 

Technically it means that there are bacteria present in urine without any symptoms of UTI. These people remain unaware of the presence of bacteria in their urine unless it is tested for. 

The typical UTI would merit evaluation and treatment with appropriate antibiotics and necessary lifestyle modifications. 

However, in case of asymptomatic bacteriuria, the classical approach is not warranted. It would mean trying to treat the reports when the person is not having any problems with the situation. It has also been found that trying to treat these patients aggressively would not be beneficial.

There are two main situations when these ASBs are considered mandatory to be treated and the patient gains an advantage from treating it. The first situation is during pregnancy, as any presence of bacteria in the urine during pregnancy is potentially harmful with possibilities of major adverse outcomes for the pregnancy. Hence treating the asymptomatic bacteria detected during routine evaluations in pregnancy needs treatment.

The second situation where treating an asymptomatic presence of bacteria is mandatory is before undergoing any surgical intervention related to the urinary system. It is imperative that the bacteria are cleared prior to the intervention otherwise there would be a potential risk of flare-up of infection due to the spread of bacteria into the bloodstream during the intervention. Apart from these two situations, it is safe to hold back aggressive antibiotic therapy for asymptomatic bacteriuria even if there are concerns such as the presence of diabetes, old age, cardiac ailments, etc. 

One can however try to inculcate lifestyle modifications to reduce the chances of harbouring bacteria in urine. These include ensuring adequate intake of water, a balanced diet with a good amount of fibre intake, avoiding constipation, avoiding withholding urination for prolonged duration, maintaining good personal hygiene, safe sexual practices, keeping blood sugars in check, and maintaining an active lifestyle. The old proverb, ‘’Prevention is better than cure’’, holds true even in the case of UTI.