My 18 month old boy is not circumcised AND HAS A UTI I?

Question

Doctors want to circumcise him and do a VCUG a nasty test where they shoot dye through a cath into his kidneys while hes taped down and x-rayed. I feel that since this is his first UTI and he is 18 months old these procedures are a little drastic. he is also cloth diapered and it was a very humid nasty week when this happened probably a breeding ground for bacteria. My niece who is 14 months old also got a UTI recently during this hot humid week and her kidneys where fine. So should I wait and see if another UTI occurs b4 i do all these procedures??????

Answer 1

I think if the Dr feels it is necessary for this test I would go ahead and have it done.I would defiantly have him circumcised because of health issue,NOW is a better time time for him to be  circumcised   ,trust me on this,a male family member had this done as an Adult and it was a horrible experience for them.I cloth diapers are cheaper but I would suggest going to the disposable kind.

Answer 2

honestly, i would wait. give him alot of REAL cranberry juice and let him go without a diaper on when there isnt any company and make sure to wash him good down there. if you dont want him circumsized, thats your and the fathers [if hes there] decision, unless there is something that happens medically thats really threatenening to his health that you need to get it done. but i think they are being a little too dramatic about it. just do the cranberry thing, IT WORKS, and let him air out good. =] if its not any better in about a week then bring him back to the doctor.

Answer 3

I care for children as my career.  One of my little guys has urinary reflux.  His pediatrician wanted him circumsized, mom says no way.  Anyhoo, he was given a round of antibiotics (which is exactly what they do for little girls) and we've been giving him well-diluted cranberry juice 2 - 3 times a day.  He's been fine ever since.

Get a second opinion.  He does not require circumcision.  It never fails to amaze me that "little boys with UTIs need to be circumsized", but yet little girls are simply given a round of antibiotics.

I'm highly prone to UTI and kidney infections, so I have studied up on them quite a bit.  I keep mine at bay with cranberry juice and haven't had a serious infection in 2 years.  Whenever my urine starts to smell, or becomes dark or cloudy, I double my cranberry juice intake.  

Answer 4

It's much rarer  for a boy to get a UTI than a girl due to the Urethra being longer in a male than a female.  I would say to get a second opinion of this is a first but he may be at risk to get more in the future, so sometimes it is better to be safe than sorry.  I am not a doctor, but I am an RN and this is just an opinion.

Answer 5

Oh, yes - wait! I would not have all of this done to your son just because of one UTI - that just sounds CRAZY to me. Get a second opinion at the least. Can you imagine how painful both of those procedures will be? I am frankly horrified right now.

Answer 6

You need to make this decision with your doctor.  My son has had countless UTI's and more VCUG's than I care to remember.  He also has severe kidney problems and these tests are very beneficial for the doctors to treat him.  There's got to be more going on than an infection.  Doctors typically don't want run this kind of test unless there is a concern.

Good Luck

Answer 7

For his first UTI I would say no way this sounds like a doctor trying to force their own personal beliefs about circumcision on you.

Answer 8

You should never "wait" when a baby has a UTI.  It is not as if this will just go away.

If you are uncomfortable with the procedures the doctors are suggesting you need to get a second opinion.    

Answer 9

If it was my son, we would definitely wait. One UTI is not the end of the world. Unusual in boys, sure, but not unheard of. antibiotics and some cranberry juice should clear it right up. If he gets repeated UTIs then I would certainly consider running tests to determine if there is an underlying cause.

Circumcision, IMO, should not be any sort of option. There is little evidence that it prevents UTIs in older boys. You would just be subjecting your son to a painful, unnecessary experience, and it wouldn't solve the problem. I would try to find a f******n-friendly doctor in your area. Doctor's Opposing Circumcision (DOC) may be able to help give you a referral, as might NOCIRC.

I think your doctors are jumping the gun on this one. Give him the antibiotics, but don't consent to further tests. The only test I can think of that *might* be necessary is a urine sample, but they should have taken one already when they determined he had a UTI. a sample allows them to know what strain of bacteria he has so they can properly treat it. Al these other tests are unnecessary and invasive. Major overkill in my opinion. -Neb

Answer 10

You need to see another doctor for sure before you go through with anything like that. In the meantime, just give your son a lot of cranberry juice to make him a little bit more comfortable. Your doctor might be biased to circumcision, which is why he's taken it upon himself to do that. Don't wait for another UTI to occur, go see another doctor. UTIs are a lot of the times painful, and you don't want your son going through that. Your doctor who is suggesting a VCUG should have given your son antibiotics for the UTI since that's pretty much a sure way to get rid of it.  

Answer 11

I would get a 2nd opinion.  It has been proven that not being circumcised has nothing to do with UTI's so the fact that he is advocating circumcision would trouble me greatly.

Answer 12

Do not wit for another UTI to happen before the docotr does these tests and yes they are necessary. Stop using the cloth diapers also they will hold the bacteria that causes the infections more than regular diapers that actually absorb them.!!!!! This is what happens and no it isn't horrible but it has to be done

Most likely, the doctor will use a catheter to obtain a sample. He'll clean your toddler's genitals with a sterile solution and put a little drape over the area. Then the doctor will thread a tube, or catheter, up the urethra to get urine straight from the bladder. This procedure is safe, routine, and takes only about a minute, but most toddlers find it distressing.

Another option, not used as often, is to collect urine directly from the bladder by inserting a needle into the lower abdomen.

The doctor may be able to get preliminary results by using a urine dipstick or by examining the urine under a microscope in the office. If he sees evidence of infection from these initial results, he may start treatment right away. If he sends the culture to a lab for testing, it may take a day or two to get the results.

The doctor may recommend other tests, as well, especially if your child is a boy of any age or a girl under 3 years old (some doctors use 5 years as the cutoff). In these groups in particular, a UTI can be a sign that there's something wrong with the child's urinary tract.

Problems that cause UTIs include blockages and a condition called vesicoureteral reflux (VUR), in which urine from the bladder backs up into the kidneys. VUR is found in 30 to 40 percent of babies and young children who have UTIs.

The tests that your toddler's doctor may recommend include:

•  An ultrasound, which uses sound waves to show a picture of the kidneys and bladder.

•  A voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG), which will show whether urine is backing up from your toddler's bladder into her kidneys. During a VCUG, X-rays are taken before a catheter is inserted into the bladder through the urethra. A liquid dye is put into the bladder through the tube, and more X-rays are taken to watch the dye as the bladder fills and as your toddler urinates. The process takes about 20 minutes.

Answer 13

Get him circumcised! NOW!

I know a guy who isn't and he gets made fun of all the time.

The sooner the better.

now now now now!

Answer 14

FIND ANOTHER DOCTOR(one that isn't money hungry and willing to mutilate baby boys).   Don't have him circumcised until he is old enough to give his consent(18 years).  The f******n is a valuable part of his sexuality...circumcised men don't know what they are missing(their partnerts have gotten used to their frantic banging away to get more stimulation). Check out all the questions on YA to see all the arguments against this brutal operation.

Google some of these websites:

Mothers against circumcision.

Doctors oppoosed to circumcision.

Catholics against circumcision.

Jews against circumcision.

Muslims against circumcision.

Answer 15

In this age group doctors are very concerned when UTI's occur in a male. The fact that the doctor wants to rule out underlying abnormalities would make me feel a whole lot better about the doctor.

I have seen little guys go to the Radiology Department for this procedure who didn't even have a large enough opening in the end of the f******n for any kind of catheter to be passed. In several of these kids no one had checked to see that this opening was big enough and terrible infections resulted.

The investigation may be nasty but having damaged kidneys to contend with for the remainder of his life is much worse. Let the docs make sure he is not going to be in danger of kidney damage. That circumcision and the test are bothering you much more than they will bother your little boy who will have little or no recollection later.

Answer 16

Being circumcised will not prevent UTI's - that is a myth.  Many doctors have picked this up somewhere along the line based on a few flimsy studies.  Look at this site - it critically examines the studies done:

http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/UTI/

Circumcision never cures anything.  If you want to learn about the real costs of circumcision read this blog:

http://wreckingboy.livejournal.com/31854...

I would say make sure he is fed properly with lots of vegetables and expose him to sunlight as vitamin D is very good for you.  Oh and make sure he has enough water.  You can  tell the right amount by how often he pees and how yellow the urine is.

One last thing that might be a problem.  If you are pulling back the f******n and cleaning under it - STOP.  You do not need to do this.  Also do not use soap or other chemicals around the f******n - water is sufficient.

http://www.cirp.org/library/hygiene/

Answer 17

What did they cut off of the girl? For that matter what did they cut off of the 9 girls that get UTIs for every complete boy that gets one?

Boys don't need mutilation any more than girls do.

Cranberry juice and anti-biotics, many males that have been circumutilated still have the problem of recurrent UTIs and will still need cranberry juice and antibiotics.

Answer 18

Your choice, but if I had a son I wouldn't do that after just one UTI, has it gone away now or have they given him antibiotics to treat it? I would wait to see if it's a recurring problem or not before I do nasty tests. I also don't think circumcision is necessary because there's no evidence it prevents UTIs.

Harriet

Answer 19

um no you should let the doc. do what they think are best maybe your baby's is worst then hers

Answer 20

Find a f******n-friendly pediatrician.  You do not want to deal with people who are not practicing evidence-based medicine.  They can catheterize him *without* retracting his f******n (NICU nurses are experts at this) and you should be quite vigilant.

I strongly recommend you join the Mothering.com forums and post in the Case Against Circumcision forum.  There are parents there who have been in your shoes and they can give you good advice:

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/for...

(Plus, there are plenty of folks who cloth diaper their babies there.)