I was prescribed penicillin a few months ago for an ear infection. I didn’t take them all for the ear infection. I woke up today with horrible pain in my lower abdomen. I feel like I constantly need to urinate and it burns very badly. There is a little bit of blood when I wipe. I believe it is a UTI, since I have had several before (but I’ve never bled with a uti ). I don’t have insurance and I can’t afford to go to the doctor right now. I’m wondering if I take penicillin vk, 500mg, 3x a day, if it will clear up the infection ? I have enough pills to do this for 5 days.
Posted by: Maria/MD Health Forum.com Team
Hi. Thank you for your question. Antibiotics should only be taken as prescribed by the doctor. You mentioned that you did not complete the antibiotic treatment before, failure to follow prescribed course of treatment increases the risk of antibiotic resistance. This could mean that your body may not respond as it should to the same type of antibiotic. Furthermore, antibiotics work differently, some classes are effective against many types of bacteria, while others are used for inhibiting the growth or killing of a specific group. Penicillin works on gram positive organisms such as the bacteria that causes skin and soft tissue infections which may not be the same bacteria that is present in infections of the urinary tract.
Painful urination, lower abdominal pain and blood in the urine are symptoms that need to be evaluated by your doctor. One of the possible causes of these symptoms is bladder infection. In addition to health history taking and physical examination, your doctor may order tests such as urinalysis. Effective treatment can only be given once the underlying health problem is identified. If you don’t have health insurance, perhaps you should check if you could avail public health services in your area. Good luck
References:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cystitis/DS00285
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/blood_in_the_urine/page2_em.htm#Causes%20of%20Blood%20in%20Urine
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Tags: antibiotic resistance, bladder infection, cystitis, painful urination, UTI
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