What to do if your baby has urinary tract infection

Women have shorter urethras and are often more susceptible to urinary tract infections. In addition, infants have poor disease resistance, and some baby girls are at a higher risk of developing urinary tract infections. Urinary tract infections have a great impact on their future development. So what can we do?

1. Because the female urethra is shorter and closer to the vagina and anus, when a girl wipes her anus after defecating, she should wipe from front to back to avoid contamination of the urethra by feces. Every time after urinating, you should also wipe (suck) the area around the urethra opening clean with toilet paper to avoid increasing the chance of infection.

2. Avoid wearing underwear or diapers, diapers and pants that are too tight to prevent skin discomfort or even friction or scratching of the skin. It can also avoid infection once contamination occurs. In addition, underwear and diapers should be changed and washed frequently to avoid diaper rash and increase the chance of urinary tract infection.

3. If a child often scratches his anus, especially in the middle of the night, you should pay attention to the possibility of pinworm infection. And treatment must be sought quickly to prevent pinworms from infecting the urethra or causing scratching of the skin due to itching, which would increase the chance of infection.

4. When little girls often scratch their inner thighs or perineum, they should pay attention to whether their vagina is infected. Because it is very close to the urethral opening, vaginitis should be treated quickly to avoid urethral infection.

5. Avoid holding urine, especially at school, when traveling, or in some inconvenient situations. Some children have a bad habit of not going to the bathroom until they get home, which often leads to problems. Here, we encourage you to urinate frequently and thoroughly. In addition, when there is a urinary tract infection, you should drink more water and urinate more often to flush out the urine and bacteria. You must not be afraid of urinating because it hurts, so you dare not drink water and deliberately hold back urination. These will make the condition worse.

6. Eat more vitamin C, including vegetables, fruits and pills, to increase the acidity of urine, making it difficult for bacteria to multiply in the urethra and bladder, thereby reducing the chance of infection. The effect will be better if you drink more water.

7. Avoid constipation to prevent the enlarged rectum from pressing on the bladder and urethra, causing blockage and retention of urine. Otherwise, these may easily lead to urinary tract infection.