What is the cause of my wife’s recurring UTIs?

What you need to know:

Much as it can affect anybody, women usually suffer most from UTIs

My wife keeps getting urinary tract infections. Every time she tests positive, they ask me to also test but my results always come back negative. Is she cheating? Erasmus

Dear Erasmus,
A urinary tract infection (UTI) affects the urinary system (kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra) and is largely caused by bacteria from the anus.

Much as it can affect anybody, women usually suffer most from UTIs. This is due to their female anatomy with a short urethra, which is located closer to the anus. Here, there is lots of bacteria that may easily gain access to the urethra and cause Urinary Tract Infections. This kind of urethra requires flushing more often before germs take a foot hold but without clean public toilets, women avoid urinating and taking fluids, hence risking infections. 
Also, women’s hormonal fluctuations during their menstrual cycle, menopause and pregnancy (including blockage of urine drainage during pregnancy) may increase the likelihood of the same infections.

A UTI, much as its occurrence increases with a woman’s increased sexual activity is not considered a sexually transmitted condition and, not surprisingly, when you are checked together with your wife, you are found to be normal. UTIs in men increase with prostate problems because of reduced urinary stream to flush germs out of the urethra when they try to invade it and cause UTIs.
When one keeps getting UTIs, she may require to improve prevention practices including taking lots of fluids, not holding urine and passing urine after sexual intercourse, among others.

Also, doctors may have to do culture and sensitivity on her urine so that more effective drugs can be given since resistance to a number of antibiotics is common. A clean catch urine sample where the middle urine is collected may also be necessary to reduce vaginal fluid contaminated urine, which may falsely indicate the presence of a UTI, whereas not.