Urinary Sepsis: Symptoms, Treatment & Urgent Care

Urinary sepsis is defined as a bacterial infection of the blood. If a urinary tract infection results in sepsis, it is a serious condition that should be treated immediately. Symptoms of urinary sepsis include a high fever, rapid heartbeat and an elevated white blood cell count.

Significance

• The first step in treating urinary sepsis is the administration of antibiotics. Since time is of the essence, your doctor will administer antibiotics immediately. Though confirming the exact bacteria will take time, you will be treated initially for the strains that most commonly cause urinary sepsis.

Types

• The bacteria most commonly responsible for urinary sepsis are staphylococcus aureus and staphylococcus epidermidis.

Function

• The antibiotic most commonly used to treat urinary sepsis is cephalosporin. However, people who are allergic to penicillin cannot use this type of drug, so alternate antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin will be used instead.

Time Frame

• Most often antibiotics will be administered intravenously for 48 hours. If improvement in the condition is seen, you will be taken off the IV and given oral antibiotics.

Warning

• If left untreated, urinary sepsis can result in septic shock or death.