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Taking Ciprofloxacin For Bladder Infection, Painful Urination, Bleeding From Penis Tip. Can Having Unprotected Sex Cause Bladder Infection?

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Posted on Sun, 26 Aug 2012
Question: Hello Doctor,

I have a question regarding my significant other, he has recently been diagnosed with a bladder infection. He saw the Doctor on July 31st and they collected a urine sample. The tests came back that it was in fact the bladder infection as I mentioned before. The thing is when he went to the doctor he wasn't in nearly as much pain as he now is. The Doctor told us that he would "probably" feel relief in 2 days after taking the medicine. Well, now it's been three days and it still is hurting to urinate (it even hurts more!?) ... and to top it all off a new symptom has developed. There is blood that leaks out at the tip of the penis head at the end of urinating in which he has to XXXXXXX down with a toilet paper to wipe it away. The medicine he is taking right now is called (Ciprofloxacin 500mg) which he has to take two pills every twelve hours until he finishes the bottle of prescription medicine.

He has been drinking nothing but water, well, and also drinking cranberry juice as that is supposed to be great for cleaning out the system, at least to our knowledge. To make note of, even though he went to see the Dr. on July 31st -- that doesn't mean it was the "first day" he was experiencing the burning sensation while peeing. Prior to that he was already experiencing these symptoms for about give or take a week or two before actually going to go see the Doctor.... now could that be a reason perhaps why some blood is showing up? because of not going to the doctor right away is causing more "serious" symptoms to appear? Also the burning sensation while peeing has only gotten worse, now he says it feels, "unbearable XXXXXXX

On the upside he has not had a fever or any types of chills/sweating. Nor has he vomited. So that's a good indication that he still is okay as far as his kidneys, right? His kidneys are still okay? The infection has not spread up there right? Or is it still possible? Because another thing that we didn't mention to the doctor (at the time) was that his penis hurts. Not only when he pee's, but it's constantly hurting. The entire penis from shaft to the head where the urinary hole is. He didn't bring this up then because at the time it was uncomfortable, but still tolerable, now it's just flat out painful in every sense of the word! I hate to see him in so much pain, I'm puzzled though shouldn't the medicine should be working? Yes? Do some patients take longer for the medicine to show it's doing it's job? Would love your feed back on all of this.

Another thing I want to add I know that bladder infections can be caused by a number of things and are more common in females than in males, but what are the most common ways of a person getting this?

Can having sex with out condoms lead to bladder infections? We do not practice anal sex as that is XXXXXXX and has a lot of bad bacterias. We both take about two showers a day and wash up before and after sex to be "extra clean" with near to perfect hygiene or so we try. As far as our health goes "sexually" we both are clean... neither one of us has had or ever had a sexual transmitted disease or infection. We both only have one partner and that is each other. Now I am a big heavier set than my significant other, when I am on top of him (riding position) can I be putting a lot of pressure on his abdominal area and groin that I can be hurting him and making him get a bladder infection due to that strain of pressure on his penis and abdominal area? Forgive my ignorance on the subject, but these are however, serious questions which I would like to know if maybe it's my fault this could have happen to him! I feel so bad right now. I just wish I knew what caused him to get this...

One more detail, he rarely drinks water in fact he never does. He hates to drink water, but I always said it's important and healthy thing to do so! He loves drinking sodas as long as it has no caffeine, that could also trigger bladder infection could it not? It wasn't only after being diagnosed with the bladder infection that he has been drinking nothing but water now and staying far away from sodas! He seems to be almost sure that it couldn't be the intake of sodas that caused this, in his mind he thinks it could be the sex and that he is putting too much strain on his penis and the pressure I put when I'm on top of him. Can that be possible?

Some information regarding the patient ~
Patient is: Male
Height about: 5'10"
Weight approximately: 180lbs
Age: 32 years old
Allergies to any medications: No
Smoke/drink? No & No
Any medicines he takes?: Only Tylenol from time to time for migraines.

Forgive me for writing so much, I just wanted to touch all the bases so that I can better understand what is going on, we both are very worried and just want him to feel okay again. Should he go see a doctor again even though he's already on medications? Or is this normal possess of healing and he has to just ride out these nasty symptoms of burning and hurting?

Thank you for your time, Doctor. :)
One more detail I forgot to mention, the tip of his penis looks very irritated.
Sincerely,
XXXXXX
doctor
Answered by Dr. V. Sasanka (1 hour later)
Hi,
Whew! That's a lot of questions, but I will try to answer them all.
First, Your husband and yourself should be congratulated- You seem to have hit off as a pair really well, and I sincerely appreciate the concern you have shown at this moment of distress.
Almost certainly your husband has a bad infection, and we need to be able to localize it. Blood at the end of voiding usually indicates inflammation of urethra and /or prostate rather than bladder, and this would also explain the pain in the shaft which is almost continuous. If his stream of voiding is good, this usually settles down with antibiotics (Ciprofloxacin is usually a good choice, but azithromycin or doxycycline are preferred by some), but the course may need to be a long one unlike the usual 7 day course we prescribe for bladder infections. Sometimes he may need a medicine from a group of drugs called alpha-blockers if he has difficulty in voiding urine along with anti-inflammatory agents. The good thing is-most of these infections do not damage the kidneys. An ultraspound examination will be able to give us a baseline estimate as to how are things in the kidneys, bladder and prostate.
When you XXXXXXX a urologist, he might want to do a cystoscopy to be able to pinpoint the source. This is essentially an office-based procedure - you can walk in and walk out almost immediately. Also for whatever it is worth, get a blood sugar test done- if the tip of penis is looking irritated, early diabetes might be the cause.
Alkalinization of urine by taking citrate solutions might help the symptoms to come down. Plenty of fluids is what we suggest - so if he does not like water, let the substitute be fruit juices like cranberry juice or milk. Coffee and tea and alcohol might irritate bladder.
I doubt if position at the time of intercourse is an issue here, but anyway please avoid intercourse for the next 2 weeks till he is totally symptom-free.
Hope I have been of help. Let me know how he is faring.
Regards.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
doctor
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Follow up: Dr. V. Sasanka (2 hours later)
Hello Dr. V. Sasanka,

Sorry for writing so much! I just am very concerned about what is happening to my husband. Thank you so much for all your response and feed back to my questions. You have no idea how much that means to me. Also, thanks for the warm words and congratulations on us being a wonderful pair, I am smiling as writing this... awe shucks, why, yes, my husband and I are a lovely match I adore him with all my heart! That's why it hurts me so to see him in so much pain. I want to do anything that I can do to help him, which is why I think that we should go to another Doctor preferably the (Urologist specialist) for a second opinion since the first Doctor didn't catch all the "details"... it seems like it's only getting worse these days and not any better unfortunately!

I am wondering something, does a patient need a "slip" from a regular family doctor that indicated the next Dr. he needs to see is a Dr. of that specialty -- being that -- a "specific" Urologist? Or can we go straight to a Urologist specialist?

In your opinion what causes this to happen to the urethra and/or prostate? Or what seems to be the "more common" causes of inflammation in that area, or is it a variety of things in which it can be hard to pin point "exactly" what it could be?

Well, I'm feeling a bit of relief here knowing that intercourse was probably not an issue causing this! But yes, to be safe we will avoid any sexual activity until he is feeling well again.

Thanks so much again for your time and your words, for they are greatly appreciated more than you can imagine.

Many Thanks,XXXXXX

doctor
Answered by Dr. V. Sasanka (9 hours later)
Hi again,
Glad to be of help, anytime.
Quite often we see cases of inflammation of prostate or urethra for no apparent reason, while we do come across cases where there would be a clear cut cause, for example a stone which has recently passed or a stricture of urethra or diabetes. This is the reason why I would rather have you visit a urologist than a general practitioner who having had experience in handling many such cases would be more adept at diagnosing and dealing with the conditions.
As to whether you can approach a urologist straight away or do you need to get a referral - I am afraid practice patterns vary across countries and states and depend on insurance policies. If you have not much of an idea, I suggest that you call up a hospital or a clinic and find out their protocol. What we have noticed is Medical Schools and Universities give very good care at very reasonable rates - this is true almost all across the world. So if that option is available - I think you can try that.
And as I said earlier, please do get back with reports and questions, if any. You are welcome.
Note: Consult a Urologist online for consultation about prostate and bladder problems, sexual dysfunction, kidney stones, prostate enlargement, urinary incontinence, impotence and erectile dysfunction - Click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
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Dr. V. Sasanka

Urologist

Practicing since :1995

Answered : 529 Questions

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Taking Ciprofloxacin For Bladder Infection, Painful Urination, Bleeding From Penis Tip. Can Having Unprotected Sex Cause Bladder Infection?

Hi,
Whew! That's a lot of questions, but I will try to answer them all.
First, Your husband and yourself should be congratulated- You seem to have hit off as a pair really well, and I sincerely appreciate the concern you have shown at this moment of distress.
Almost certainly your husband has a bad infection, and we need to be able to localize it. Blood at the end of voiding usually indicates inflammation of urethra and /or prostate rather than bladder, and this would also explain the pain in the shaft which is almost continuous. If his stream of voiding is good, this usually settles down with antibiotics (Ciprofloxacin is usually a good choice, but azithromycin or doxycycline are preferred by some), but the course may need to be a long one unlike the usual 7 day course we prescribe for bladder infections. Sometimes he may need a medicine from a group of drugs called alpha-blockers if he has difficulty in voiding urine along with anti-inflammatory agents. The good thing is-most of these infections do not damage the kidneys. An ultraspound examination will be able to give us a baseline estimate as to how are things in the kidneys, bladder and prostate.
When you XXXXXXX a urologist, he might want to do a cystoscopy to be able to pinpoint the source. This is essentially an office-based procedure - you can walk in and walk out almost immediately. Also for whatever it is worth, get a blood sugar test done- if the tip of penis is looking irritated, early diabetes might be the cause.
Alkalinization of urine by taking citrate solutions might help the symptoms to come down. Plenty of fluids is what we suggest - so if he does not like water, let the substitute be fruit juices like cranberry juice or milk. Coffee and tea and alcohol might irritate bladder.
I doubt if position at the time of intercourse is an issue here, but anyway please avoid intercourse for the next 2 weeks till he is totally symptom-free.
Hope I have been of help. Let me know how he is faring.
Regards.