DEAR DR. GOTT: I am a 25-year-old active female. About 10 months ago I began experiencing frequent urination, having to urinate every 30 minutes to an hour and either once or twice at night. I stopped drinking fluids after 7 p.m. That didn’t work.
I went to see a doctor several times who thought it might be a urinary tract infection. I was tested four times and every culture came back negative. I finally went to a urologist, who said I was retaining too much fluid and who put me on some medication. Nothing has worked. Is there anything you can recommend?
DEAR READER: I question whether you had a clean-catch midstream culture and took the necessary initial steps prior to presenting the specimen, or whether you might have tested negative because you were on an antibiotic for a presumed urinary tract infection.
Some common causes of frequent urination include diabetes types 1 and 2, prostatitis in men, cystitis (inflammation of the bladder), a neurogenic bladder, pyelonephritis (kidney and upper urinary tract inflammation), hypokalemia (low potassium levels), bladder or kidney stones, hypercalcemia (an excess of calcium in the blood), an ovarian cyst or fibroids.
Some individuals find that adding one or two 8-ounce glasses of 100 percent cranberry juice to their daily diet can ward off symptoms of a UTI, as can 200 mg of vitamin A daily. Vitamin A deficiency can cause people to awaken two to three times each night with an urge to urinate.
Because your problem has continued, I recommend you make an appointment with a urologist who can take your medical history and determine what, if any, additional testing might be necessary, such as cystoscopy, which examines the inside of the bladder. I don’t in any way imply your physician is incorrect, but it is time for a second opinion.
Readers who would like related information can order my Health Reports “Bladder and Urinary Tract Infections” and “More Compelling Home Remedies” by sending a self-addressed, stamped No. 10 envelope and a $2 U.S. check or money order for each report to Dr. Peter Gott, P.O. Box 433, Lakeville, CT 06039. Be sure to mention the title(s), or print an order form from my website’s direct link: www.AskDrGottMD.com/order_form.pdf.
