Health Topics

A risk factor is something that increases your chance for getting an illness. These things can increase your child’s chance of getting a UTI:

• Not going to the bathroom often enough (in toilet trained kids)
• Using things that can bother the place where urine comes out (such as bubble bath)
• Infant boys who are not circumcised
• When urine flows backwards from the bladder up into the kidneys, called vesicoureteral (VES-ih-ko-yu-REE-ter-ul) reflux. This can happen because parts of the urinary tract are not normal.
• Blockage: where a blockage limits or stops urine flow

• Fever (may be the only symptom in babies)
• Being fussy (in babies)
• Throwing up (babies or older children)
• Feeling the need to use the bathroom often (older children)
• Pain or burning with peeing (older children)
• Lower belly or back pain
• Blood in urine
• Potty trained children wetting themselves

Your doctor will ask about your child’s symptoms and past health. They will do a physical exam. Tests will include:  

• Urinalysis: a study of a urine sample
• Urine culture: detects germs in urine

Talk to your doctor about the best treatment for your child. Treatment options include:

• Antibiotics: Medicines that kill germs and will help clear up the infection
• Fluids: Drink plenty of fluids. Offer fluids so that your child continues to pee regularly.

The doctor may want to see how your child’s urinary tract looks by doing a test.

• Ultrasound of kidneys and bladder: Picture to see the kidneys, bladder, and the tubes between them
• Voiding cystourethrogram (sis-toe-u-reeth-ro-gram) or VCUG:  X-ray picture to see how the bladder is working

The American Academy of Pediatrics has made suggestions for how doctors should treat the first UTI in children aged 2-24 months. They recommend these children have an ultrasound.  A VCUG is advised ONLY if there is a problem seen on the ultrasound.

• Give your child lots of fluids to drink. Offer fluids so that your child continues to pee regularly.
• Give your child all the medicine the doctor gave you for the infection. Do not stop the medicine, even if your child is feeling and acting better.
• Tell your doctor if your child’s symptoms continue, such as fever. 
• Take medicines for pain or fever only as directed by your doctor. Do not give aspirin to children. 
• Keep all follow-up appointments.
• Do not use bubble bath, shampoo, or soaps in your child’s bathwater.
• Encourage your toilet trained child to use the bathroom every 2-3 hours.
• UTIs can happen again in some children. Your doctor needs to diagnose and treat UTIs to prevent more problems.
• Call your doctor right away if you think your child is showing signs of a UTI.
• Let your doctor know if your child has a fever without a clear cause. More testing may also be needed if there are further UTIs.  

Seek care or call your doctor if:

• Your baby is 3 months old or younger with a rectal temperature of 100.4⁰F or more