If you’ve ever had a urinary tract infection (UTI), you know how uncomfortable it can be, prompting you to consider the fastest option for relief. While you might be inclined to contact your doctor as a first option, many people ask themselves the question, should I go to urgent care for a UTI? Does urgent care treat UTIs?
Yes, you can! You can go to urgent care to treat UTIs. Urgent care centers offer same-day diagnosis and treatment, saving you the time and hassle of scheduling an appointment.Plus, understanding the root cause of infection and knowing how to prevent it can help you prevent reoccurrences.
UTI Causes
Anything that upsets the urinary tract’s natural flora can lead to a urinary tract infection. Most UTIs result when harmful bacteria enter any part of the urinary tract, including the bladder, kidneys, ureters, or urethra. Women are more susceptible to UTIs than men because they have shorter urethras, making it easy for bacteria to travel to the bladder and multiply.
Other causes of UTIs include:
- Sexual activity
- Urinary abnormalities
- Some forms of birth control
- Autoimmune disorders
- Holding in your urine
- Hygiene products
- Dehydration
- Nerve damage around the bladder
- A spinal cord injury
- Having a shorter urethra than normal
- And more
UTIs won’t always cause immediate symptoms. But when they do, most involve painful and annoying symptoms in the lower urinary tract. Typical UTI symptoms include:
- Strong or persistent urge to urinate
- Burning sensation when urinating
- Pelvic pain in women
- Passing small amounts of urine frequently
- Foul-smelling urine
- Cloudy, pink, red, or cola-colored urine
At the onset, people often confuse the symptoms of STIs with those of UTIs. Other diseases may present similarly to a UTI. For example, bacterial vaginosis and yeast infections lead to irregular discharge, vaginal itchiness, or blood in the urine (which rarely happens with a UTI).
UTIs can cause serious problems and lead to additional symptoms when they go untreated and spread to the kidneys. That’s why urgent care for treating UTIs matters.
Can I go to urgent care for UTI?
Urgent care clinics can diagnose and treat just about anything that a primary care physician can treat, whether it’s a terrible case of the flu or a urinary tract infection. You can always get a walk-in clinic UTI treatment.
While there’s no harm in waiting for your primary care physician for UTI treatment, most people would rather get treatment immediately. Urgent care centers, by their very definition, come in handy when you need effective and convenient medical attention as soon as possible.
With same-day walk-in appointments and extended hours, urgent care clinics make it easy to get answers and relief from a healthcare professional. At our Poipu Mobile MD clinic, we’ll perform a urine test or urinalysis to determine if you have a UTI.
After a review of urine cultures, we can prescribe the best course of action and type of antibiotic treatment for you. Treatment typically depends on the severity of your infection. For example, treatment options differ for simple, frequent, and severe infections.
Can you treat a UTI at home?
While you can work to prevent UTIs, you cannot treat them at home. Visit urgent care for UTI symptoms as soon as possible.
Do you need to go to the ER for a UTI?
Although urgent care clinics can treat most UTIs, some symptoms point to a severe problem that may warrant a visit to the ER. These symptoms include:
- High fever
- Vomiting
- Shaking and chills
- Severe nausea
Pregnant women, young children, the elderly, immunocompromised individuals, and people with conditions like kidney disease and diabetes may need specialized treatment. Your nearest urgent care facility or doctor can direct you to the appropriate location.
Untreated UTIs can lead to life-threatening health conditions if the infection spreads to other parts of the body, such as the kidneys. Kidney infections can lead to sepsis, a complication in which your body gets overwhelmed while fighting an infection.
Go to the ER if you notice the following symptoms of sepsis caused by a UTI:
- Difficulty breathing
- Abnormal heart function
- Extreme fatigue
- Inability to think clearly
Can I prevent a UTI?
Public health experts highly recommend a few at-home remedies that may prevent a UTI. Common remedies include:
Drink plenty of liquids, especially water: Emptying your bladder flushes bacteria and other microbes out of the urethra. Also, water dilutes urine, making urination less painful.
Empty your bladder soon after intercourse: This helps flush bacteria out of your urinary tract.
Wipe from front to back: Doing so after a bowel movement or urinating prevents bacteria from spreading from the anal region to the urethra.
Change your birth control method: Diaphragms, spermicides, or treated/unlubricated condoms can contribute to bacterial growth.
Avoid potentially irritating feminine products: Using feminine products such as powders, deodorant sprays, and douches in the genital area can irritate the urethra.
Drink cranberry juice: While studies are inconclusive about the benefits of cranberry juice in helping prevent UTIs, some have shown that it can help.
Urgent care for UTI
UTIs don’t have to be a hassle to treat if you take the time to visit an urgent care for treating UTIs. The urgent care center will diagnose your symptoms and coordinate a treatment option. When seeking treatment for a UTI, your total out-of-pocket cost will depend on several factors, including:
- Insurance status
- Prescription medication/drugs
- Diagnostic tests
- Type of UTI diagnostic test
- Type of insurance
Because you can easily walk into an urgent care center or schedule an online visit for UTI diagnosis and treatment, these centers allow you to get back to your healthy self easier and faster.
If you ever need urgent care for treating UTIs on the island of Kauai, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Poipu Mobile MD Clinic. We offer walk-ins and online booking for urgent care services and cater to house calls — no need for an appointment. Visit our website, call or text us today at 808-652-7021 for UTI diagnosis and treatment.
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