The Most Common Doctor-Prescribed Treatments for Urinary Tract Infections

When a urinary tract infection gets out of control and home remedies, like cranberry juice and drinking fluids don't seem to help, doctors use their own form of treatment to kill the infection. There are several antibiotics that seem to help and doctors will often recommend continued use of cranberry juice, cranberry supplements and water.

Doctors can prescribe preventative treatments of bladder infections in the form of a single antibiotic taken at the onset of symptoms or after intercourse. These antibiotics are generally in the form of Nitrofurantoin (Macrodantin) or Bactrim (trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole). They can be used to treat ongoing bladder infections but are not considered very strong antibiotics.

Antibiotics become the primary line of treatment for uncomplicated urinary tract infections. There are several antibiotics that can be used for simple bladder infections.

繚 You can use a penicillin-based antibiotic known as amoxicillin (Trimox, Amoxil). This antibiotic has a lot of resistant bacteria related to it so it shouldn't be used in complicated or recurrent urinary tract infections.

繚 Macrodantin, also called Furadantin, is the brand name for nitrofurantoin. It is an antibiotic in a class by itself, has very few allergies associated with it and it works well on Gram-negative bacteria, the most common cause of bladder infections.

繚 Bactrim, which carries the generic name of sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim, is an excellent antibiotic for both for prevention and or treatment of urinary tract infections. It carries a high risk of allergic reactions in some people so you have to know if you are allergic to "sulfa drugs" before you take the antibiotic. It is taken twice a day for up to ten days, depending on the severity of the bladder infection.

繚 Cipro (ciprofloxacin) and Levaquin (levofloxacin) are both quinolone antibiotics that work extremely well for urinary tract infections, including kidney infections and bladder infections. There is little chance of allergic reactions and it can be given by IV or orally. Sometimes only a few days' worth of this type of antibiotic is enough to treat a simple bladder infection.

There is controversy over whether a person should take a single dose of an antibiotic for the treatment of an infection or whether they should take a full course of seven to ten days. The truth is that simple bladder infections will clear with a single course of antibiotic, especially if you use a quinolone type of antibiotic; however, sometimes it just kills off the less harmful bacteria, leading to resistant bacteria taking hold and being more difficult to treat. Other doctors recommend a three day course of antibiotics along with the drinking of plenty of fluids. Still others go the entire week or ten days, making sure the bladder infection is gone before stopping the antibiotic. You should discuss the situation with your doctor to decide how long a treatment course should be, given your symptoms and how many previous bladder infections you have had in the recent past.

Pain medication can be given to block the infection. This includes the topical anesthetic called pyridium, which numbs the inside of the bladder and makes you feel better much more quickly than if you didn't take the anesthetic. The downside of the anesthetic is that it turns your urine bright orange and the orange color can stain your underwear if you are not careful with wiping.