When your children are young, your most common complaint at the pediatrician’s office is usually something along the lines of, “I just wish they could tell me what hurts.”
Parents often have no way of knowing why a child is crying, fussing, not eating or not sleeping. Really, you figure, it could be anything. And it often is.
But sometimes, such as when your baby or young child has a urinary tract infection, not knowing what’s causing your child’s discomfort and letting it go untreated could lead to something serious.
Signs your child has a UTI
With a UTI, babies and young children don’t always have the telltale symptoms of pain or burning with urination. They may present instead with these symptoms:
- Fever
- Decreased eating
- Irritability
Although those symptoms can run the gamut when it comes to their true cause, it’s best to have your child checked out by a doctor.
Higher risk for babies
If your baby is less than 2 months old, a UTI could be extremely serious, said Dr. John La Count, a pediatrician with St. Elizabeth Physicians’ Florence office. UTIs can lead to kidney infections, which can spread to the blood, brain or spinal fluid, potentially causing sepsis or meningitis.
“The problem you run into with a UTI is, by the time you catch it, kids can be really sick,” La Count said.
UTIs are common in babies and young children, and more common in girls than in boys. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, about three percent of girls and one percent of boys will have a UTI by the time they’re 11.
Outgrowing UTIs
The good news is that UTIs become increasingly less common with age, La Count said, because kids’ hygiene habits improve. The bad news is that additional testing is often needed to make sure there isn’t a structural abnormality present.
The testing includes an ultrasound of the kidneys and an X-ray that takes pictures of the bladder and urethra during urination to make sure urine isn’t flowing backward into the kidneys.
In younger children, hospitalization might be required so doctors can get the cultures they need and treat any problems that might arise.
Most of the time, though, UTIs can be treated with oral antibiotics.
