UTI effects, how long do they last?

My mom had a stroke in 2019 - I suspected a UTI in Jan 2020 as she was having confusion etc - took her to ER to make sure not another stroke etc - they said positive uti as well as low potassium. She was alert just slower etc - every day on the antibiotics she became worse - severe delirium ended up with encephalopathy - I was suspecting the antibiotics - they switched her and she woke up and was starting to come out of it and then within 24 of new antibiotic Cipro she had the same severe confusion decline. I suspect my mother was slow due to her potassium being low and not due to a UTI and the delirium and unable to eat and loss of all function was her having severe reactions to the IV antibiotics - she lost all ability to eat and swallow again during antibiotics - every stroke recovery we had made went backwards. I started refusing the rest of the antibiotics and she finally started slowly recovering. I have since seen her have this same confusion or slower self when her potassium is low and I have to give her a few days to get her back up again. My new neuro also believes she had a reaction to the Class Cipro and the other one they had her on is in. They were the same class of antibiotics. Her previous brain injury from her stroke the year before made her not do well on antibiotics since. Have the potassium and sodium levels checked and find out if the antibiotics are completed.
My mother took a good month to regain her stronger swallow and recovery gains back and a few months to feel back to where we were. Again when she acts this way now I have her potassium levels checked. 🙏🏼

AlvaDeer,
My mom has chronic UTI's, some very serious. I tried D-Mannose and the product did not help. I thought D-Mannose only helped E-coli infections. Do you know why it helps some and not others? Thank you.

Your situation is similar to ours. Father doing fine in MC. One Friday has trouble following instructions on transferring himself off toliet, so they send him to hospital, suspecting UTI. He is amicably chatting with attendants as he goes. Admitting doctor calls me to tell me UTI is minor and he responded well to fluids/anti-biotics. Could go back to MC same day but MC doesn't have weekend nurse and wants him to stay in hospital over the weekend to "get stronger". He ends up getting too much fluid and that sends him into confusion. At least the doctor had the grace to admit this to me. End up keeping him in hospital 5 days during which time, he is not getting PT or anything to help him get stronger. They use a lift to put him in a chair or get him to the toilet. He is awake, cognizant and frustrated. Eats about 1/2 what they give him. Speech therapist gets involved and decides he has a swallowing problem (which he didn't have in MC). They discharge him to nursing home with pureed food/ nectared liquid orders. And in the hospital they took away his daily aspirin without telling me. (I found out on the discharge sheet. The only answer I ever got about that was they thought he was chewing it so it might not be effective.) Rehab nursing home continues hospital orders - pureed food and no aspirin. Now father too weak and scared to participate in PT, not eating enough, needs to be lifted to go to toliet or get in a chair. Confused and unhappy. Nursing home/rehab giving him basic care but spends most of his time in bed with TV on. Becomes less responsive and then one day, he is unable to feed himself. I think he had a stroke but no one seems to recognize that. If they can't get him to sit upright in the dining room, they won't feed him because they are concerned about aspiration. Nursing home wants him discharged because of Medicare. Original MC won't take him because they don't have a lift. I find him another - better place - but he passes away before I can get him moved. All from something that started as a "minor UTI".

I blame the MC for not having a lift and a weekend nurse, both which would have made the trip to the hospital unnecessary. I blame the hospital speech therapist who put him on pureed food because the swallow test turned up negative. (I pulled the hospital records.) I blame the doctor who took him off his aspirin regamine which had been working well for him since a previous stroke several years earlier. I blame the rehab nursing home which much too ready to give up on him. They were inconsistent tracking him and communicating with us. Mostly I blame myself for not forcing the doctors to pay attention. Once he was in the rehab nursing home, it was a musical chairs game of trying to find out if a doctor ever saw him. Not while I was there and I was there a lot.

Don't let your mother lay there and get weaker. Don't let them treat her like just another old person. Question anything you don't understand.

By you stating your mom just had a tripple bypass and then slurred speech, I was concerned that something could have caused her to have a stroke.

I am not a medical professional.

You mentioned she had a UTI. I decided to do some research. This is what I read.

"Researchers have linked infections like pneumonia and UTI to an increased risk to having a coronary event, such as a heart attack or stroke within the next three months."

You may want to take her to another hospital. I wouldn't take a chance. Tripple bypass is serious stuff. I know, my husband had one too.

At the same time, I would give her Cranberry juice to drink. It is an antioxidant and it works good for UTI. Doctors here recommend it. That is what I drink.

Is it possible for her to eat some plain yogurt or yogurt low in sugar, she might some probiotics to get her system back in shape.  Some people react differently to antibotics and it takes a while, but people should always follow up with probiotics to help get the good (whatever) back into their guts.  sorry couldn't remember correct word for "whatever".  antibotics take out the good stuff and the probiotics put it back.  wishing you luck.

Flouroquinelones

My brother had a very bad reaction to cipro for UTI, put him in The hospital because he was acting crazy
that line of antibiotics can have crazy neurological effects, esp depending on other meds. He is on Parkinsons meds.
the type is quinelones? (Spelling) or something like that. There are others in this category as well. Look it up. (Sorry, can’t get to look it up while writing this)
christine

I have had problem UTI infections going on 15 months . usual treatment is 10 days antibiotics then a week off and a new Urine test that shows positive. Repeat ! Finally referred to a urologist. Got an appointment for the earliest being in THREE months! A large hospital with only one urologist. Been to emergency room twice for this. BTW I am 77 years old. Good luck getting your needed help.

Bounce back immediately from UTI? Usually, no. Gerontology Drs told me at hospital that for seniors, UTI recovery can take 6 weeks. Sadly, the UTI 'does a number' on them and the meds 'do a number' on them. Also, always check med side effects and interactions with other meds she is taking at same time.

Imho, your mother needs a full medical evaluation, including complete blood count panel. Prayers sent.

She needs more testing. A resolved UTI resolves the confusion. Something is going on with her. Can't help but wonder if she may have had a clot after the surgery. Perhaps contact that doctor to request more testing.

My grandmother went through valve surgery, did fine and was going to be discharged. The same day, she had a clot that caused death.

Every time my MIL had a UTI we saw immediate results when she went on the Cipro. Is it possible she had a stroke that wasn't detected by whatever test the hospital did? That's what the effects sound like. You probably need to get her checked by her regular doctor as well as the heart doctor. This does not sound normal for a UTI.

Acacia,
Garlic is a good product but if on blood thinners you need to check with the doctor. My mothers neurologist told me he did not want her taking garlic because she is on anticoagulants. My moms naturopath wanted her to take garlic instead of the blood thinners but I checked with doctor first and he said no.

Garlic is a natural treatment and source of prevention of UTIs

My 83 yo MIL had a stroke that was not detected by CT scan, only found by MRI the next day when her symptoms didn't lessen. Has she had both done? Bless you, I know how difficult this is.

Your mother should have a thorough checkup, MINIMUM with regular doc, heart doc and possibly a urologist. Make note of ALL medications she takes. If possible, run all these meds by a pharmacist, including the cipro, even though she may be done with it. She may also need to see a neurologist or someone versed in brain/neuro disorders. Something isn't right.

All too often medications are prescribed, but no one really checks to see what, if any, interactions their might be with other medications, including OTCs. If she has never had cipro before, it could be causing issues. While the majority of people can take the majority of medications, there are cases where meds can't be taken. My mother always said she was allergic to "mycins", and my daughter couldn't take erythromycin (Rxed to treat UTI at 9 months, didn't treat it and she ended up with vomiting even water and a bad case of hives!) While in hospital myself, they were daily injecting heparin (blood thinner) - these became more painful by the day. Hematologist came to my room and said when I came in my platelet count was fine, but has since shot sky high. Ummm, I'm not allowed to eat and anything going into me YOU all are putting it there, figure it out! When I ended up with a hematoma, the damn shots stopped, and magically my platelet count returned to normal! Heparin should NOT increase, but rather decrease platelet count to help prevent blood clots. My dad, after major heart surgery, was to take certain meds forever but adverse reactions led to the docs reducing the dosage until finally he could only take 2 baby aspirin/day.

Although medications or bad med interactions can cause these symptoms, there could be any number of causes and you need to push push push so these docs understand your mom was doing fine and this is a sudden change! ALL sudden changes have a cause and THEY need to find it.

Mom's first UTI at MC (she used to have at least one/year before dementia, sometimes more) resulted in sun-downing. She insisted she had to get out, she had guests coming and had to go home. Hours of this. Unfortunately it was Fri evening, no doc access until Mon! We had to use anti-anxiety along with the antibiotic to keep her calm. AFTER treatment there was no need for the other. No slurring, no trouble articulating (not that it means your mother couldn't exhibit these symptoms.) Subsequent UTIs showed up with night time bed wetting. Most recently she had TIA or mini-stroke. Slumped over, slurred speech, right side weakness. Some resolved quickly (she refused to go to hospital, we didn't push it - she's 97, no real hearing, overweight, dementia, won't stand or walk, mac deg, etc.) but nurse said still slurring a bit and still has the weakness rt side.

Again, given your mom is much younger (guessing), and did so well with surgery, I would push every doc and then some. She isn't doing this to be a pain, and it IS a sign that something is wrong. Medications. Too much or not enough water (yes, too much can wash your system out and cause confusion, etc). UTI (general rule is one should be AT LEAST 3 days past medication before testing, as it can show up negative! Been there done that with my son and his tonsils!) Even if "dip stick" test for UTI is negative, have them do a culture. Stroke or TIA. I'm not in the medical field, so there could be a whole list of other causes for this. PUSH!

Doctors, radiologists, nurses are all human and we ALL make mistakes or miss things. This is NOT who your mother was post-surgery and again, sudden onset of ANYTHING is a warning. If her current docs won't work with you, find better ones! Go to a highly regarded hospital and seek the best docs.

I am not medical in any way but will say that I was told by doctor (when my mom was hospitalized due to UTI and blood clots almost a year ago) that for every 1 day in the bed it takes 5 days to regain the strength lost. Also with my mom, each procedure performed (under anesthesia) throughout the years seem to cause her mind to get a little weaker - memory issues, etc. Sadly, she has been battling dementia for several years now and the UTI and blood clot about a year ago seemed to send her on a downward spiral. It may take your mom some time, lots of good consistent therapy, some additional testing, possible med changes, etc to get back to being herself or somewhere closer to her old self. Do your best to make sure your mom is getting adequate fluids, eating well, moving about, taking meds consistently and don’t hesitate to keep asking questions to her medical staff until you find out the culprit causing this change. Prayers and Best wishes to you!

Took my 101 year old mom to the ER for a UTI. They gave a prescription for a course of antibitotics. She was quite delirious. They said when the antibitotics clear the infection, the delirium should also clear. It did not nor did the UTI, both got worse. A week later she was admitted to the hospital for a 3 day IV antibiotic treatment for the same UTI. The delirium did not clear on its own. The doctor put her on Respiridone as she was constantly talking and laughing in her delirium. It took about 2 weeks of a .5mg dose of this medicine 2x a day to start to control the delirium. Now about 8 weeks later she is starting to get back to reality her doctor reduced the dose by half. It's been a long haul. I do not know if she will ever come back completely to how she was before this last UTI but I do know without that medicine she would have most likely exhausted both her and myself to death with the delirium. Guess what I am trying to say is very elderly with weak immune systems react in many different ways to infections as well as trauma such as surgery. When she had a broken hip repair surgery she also became delirious in much the same way as with the UTI but that cleared in a few days. I think each trauma she now experiences lowers her cognitive level a bit more. She is less able to fight her way back to normal. It's sad but it is a reality we both must face at this stage in her life. I hope you are able to find the right treatment for your own mother. I suspect the UTI knocked her down quite a bit like it did my mom. With weaker immune systems it is harder to bounce back and then the added trauma of surgery makes it even harder.

You do not indicate your mother’s age, but I am sure that the doctor would not have proceeded with her heart surgery if she was very old. It has been my experience that a hospital will start treatment of UTI, but also take and grow a urine culture to determine an appropriate antibiotic treatment. Nevertheless, you indicate that the UTI was later tested negative.

Your mom has experienced severe stress and trauma with heart surgery, UTI, hospitalization, and rehab. etc. Each person reacts differently to life’s health problems. While you may pursue answers, sometimes it may not be clear and definitive; especially for an older person. Your mom may get slowly somewhat better like where she was before, or she may never be the same again. You can only do the best you can to help her.

As an RN/NP, here is what I have observed with my 81 y.o. sister with dementia:
Every time she has required general anesthesia (Bowel Cancer and Knee surgery),
her dementia has increased within 1-2 days. No UTI's.

Get on the phone right now and call the cardiologist, again. It is very important that her cardiologist knows all about this. He is the one that should be leading you the way to go with your mother.

Don't stop at nothing. Do not sit and wait. You keep going until they find your mother's problem/you get answers.

Hospitals are not always right. Sometimes you have to go to another hospital.

Also, if it were me, I would be giving my mom Cranberry juice to drink.

Is she on other meds? Sometimes when elderly people have a uti their body does not flush the meds as they should. In my mother's case it caused her to have hallucinations from the med she was on for shingles. She was also very lethargic. She has been over two months (so far) trying to recover from shingles pain. She also became very weak. We had to resort to using a walker and home health care as well.

This happened to our Mom and she never recovered. The docs said the UTI “had gotten into her blood stream.” She was at home when she contracted it and our brother, who was her caregiver, detected it because she became confused and incoherent but the signs, which no one in the family understood at the time, were there well before that. Education about the deleterious effects of UTI’s on the elderly is sadly lacking nor do I believe that most hospitals routinely test elderly people for this when they are admitted. We have no idea how long she had it before it was way too late to “cure” her and try to counteract the effects. I hope you have a different experience.

Mama ended up in a nursing home and went inexorably down hill for two more years and died at 101. At the last she still recognized all five of her kids but didn’t remember her husband at all, thought her parents we’re still alive, thought she still lived with them in her childhood home, got songs on her mind and sang at the top of her lungs, talked indiscreetly about sex, wheeled herself into other peoples rooms and climbed in bed with men, stole other people’s eye glasses, openly criticized the hairdos of the female staff and did a lot of other things that we have since come to think of rather humorously. Mama was the soul of Southern discretion and she was still wise enough to stay on the good side of the staff. At times she thought she was at the country club and formally introduced us to all the other out of contact people at the luncheon table. She would have hated to end the way she did, but, even so, kept her wits about her enough to one sunny day just peacefully grind to a halt.

My mother never wanted to die and we were so blessed that she accepted every stage of life with equanimity. Mama always said, “Every age has its compensations.” If your mother doesn’t recover, I suggest that you accept what has happened and find joy in all the things that made your mother what she was, understand that she is the same person, and make sure you and your siblings are at her bedside when she meets her maker. We still speak of her last days often and yet, after she died, she became younger and perfectly lucid again in our remembrance.

Get her to see a urologist and a follow-up with cardiology. Either UTI and toxic products of destroying bacteria are a problem or she is not getting good circulation to her brain which mimics a stroke. I would opt to see the cardiologist first.

You deffiently need to take her to a Urologist and remove her from rehab.

Being miserable and depressed will make one go down hill and not even want to live.

If they caught the UTI right away and started her on antibiotics. It only takes a few days to get back to normal.

First thing bring her home !!!!

She will be Safer Happier and get Healthier...
You deffiently need to make a Dr's appointment with her Dr first, if her Insurance won't let her go to a Specialist Uroligist first.

Don't Delay.

Prayers

I was told my mother would but it’s 4 years now it’s like her brain had a fire and nothing has changed, she had a UTI which cleared but her mind is totally damaged. It is mind boggling! She went from a normal person of 88 to a full blow LBD now 92.

Cipro causes problems. Research that.

Often they never recover from delirium. This is now the new "normal". You can get her to see a neurologist but don't expect any miracles.

In my experience with my mom, UTIs can be very hard on the elderly. My mom has had a few similar incidents with UTIs where she was disoriented and had to go to the hospital and then rehab. The infection had spread to her blood which really took a toll on her and her mobility. She was in the hospital for a week then had to go to rehab to regain her strength and mobility. She has bounced back somewhat—back living on her own. Since she is prone to getting UTIs, her urologist recommended a natural supplement called D-mannose that she takes every day. It is what is found in cranberries and can be purchased at amazon or other places that sell supplements and vitamins. It has helped to stop reoccurring UTIs. I’d recommend that you ask the rehab place to retest your mom for a UTI again, as they are sometimes hard to get rid of and perhaps this is impacting her ability to bounce back. Best of luck to your mom, you, and your family.

In some states now, rehab is limited to in-room only for the first 14 days of isolation due to COVID. Of course this is better than nothing but is seriously limited.

My wife was sent to rehab in June and on the 13th day, 2 employees that she had come in contact with tested positive, thus another 14 days of isolation. So 27 days of rehab limit done in-room only with little to no improvement.

She came home in early August and is now either wheelchair or bed bound.