- e-Vet ALERT: Ticks and Disease
- e-Vet ALERT: Possible Spring Pet Injuries
- We have lost two special animals this past month
- e-Vet ALERT: Valentine dangers to your pet – roses, lilies, raisins, chocolate and more.
- $5 provides a box of Valentine’s cookies for a dog, or a box of heart-shaped treats for a cat
Recurring bladder infection
My 12 year old belgian shepard has had a recurring bladder infection for at least 2 years. I’m in Chicago and my vet has tried a variety of antibiotics during this time, including cephalexin, amoxicillin, SMT, enrofloxacin, cipro, and gentamicin. A recent urine culture indicated that a strain of E. coli that seems to be at the root of this infection is resistant to 18 out of 21 antibiotics tested for sensitivity. The three that were indicated as being possible options were macrodantin, amikacin, and imipenem. Macrodantin was administered first and was discovered to be ineffective after a follow-up urinalysis. 10 amikacin injections were given next, and were found to be effective, but did not clear the infection completely. I’ve heard of bacteria being able to invade transitional epithelial cells and survive antibiotic administration and am wondering if this is the case here. The paper I’ve attached details that situation. I have two questions:
1) Would it be possible to administer antibiotics through injection to the areas where the bacteria might be “hiding”?
2)Are there any recommendations that you could make to my vet regarding this case?
Thanks in advance.
Mike Janus
No related posts.
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
I would look at anatomical reasons for the repeated infections. An ultrasound to look for radiolucent stones would also be helpful information. I know of some work done at UC Davis that indicates long term, low dose antibiotics, specifically amoxicillin, regardless of the sensitivity results have been shown to control, but not cure, this type of cystitis. Where is the closest Veterinary School to your location? I think this would be a perfect case for a university.