UTI During Pregnancy - Why Should You Worry?

The urinary system of our body consists of kidneys, ureter, bladder, and urethra. A urinary tract infection occurs in the system and is the most common disease in women, especially during pregnancy. Pregnancy leads to many hormonal changes in a woman’s body. The changes increase the risk of vesicoureteral flux and urinary stasis. Though most of the infections are limited to the bladder and urethra, sometimes it might even affect the kidneys. When the UTI reaches the kidneys during pregnancy, it can lead to premature child birth and below average weight of the baby after birth.

Why are pregnant women more susceptible to UTI?
Pregnant women are considered to be immunocompromised UTI hosts. It is due to the physiological changes that a woman undergoes during this period. The changes raise the risk of serious infectious complications from symptomatic and asymptomatic urinary infections.

Hormones cause changes in the body during pregnancy and these hormonal changes are one of the main reasons behind getting an infection. The developing uterus presses on the bladder as you carry the baby and it grows with time, and this makes it hard for the woman to let out all the urine which is unhygienic. It becomes difficult to empty the bladder; as a result, it becomes more prone to reflux. It is a state where some of the urine travels back to the ureter and finally to the kidneys.

The symptoms to look out for

• The need to urinate often and with an urgency
• Feeling of burning sensation during urination
• Cramps in the lower back or lower belly
• The color of the urine is not transparent and has an odor to it

Why should you be worried?
Asymptomatic bacteriuria is a bacterial infection in the urinary tract and which shows no symptoms as such. If the woman is not pregnant, then the asymptomatic infection would not be severe. Moreover, it would clear on its own. On the other hand, if the person is pregnant, this type of bacterial disease needs to be treated immediately as there is a chance of a kidney infection if it is left untreated.

When the progesterone levels are high, it decreases the muscle tone of the ureter causing them to dilate and slowing the urine flow. The slow rate of the flow of urine gives the bacteria more time to multiply and take hold of the bladder before the urine is flushed out of the system. It becomes easier for those bacteria to flow back to the kidneys. Moreover, during pregnancy, the urine becomes less acidic and contains more glucose, a condition which is suited for bacterial growth.

Drinking plenty of water prevents you from a Urinary Tract Infection during pregnancy. If you detect any of the symptoms, report to your doctor who would advise urine test to perform diagnosis and proceed with the treatment.