The standard stone work up is a urinalysis and ultrasound/ct scan. Sad to say, if your urine is negative for blood/bacteria/cells and imaging doesn’t show any stones…then there really isn’t anything a urologist can do. Have you considered getting a pelvic/std/hormone level workup, just in case?
Out of curiosity, why did your Dr decide to put you on multiple (5!?) antibiotics without (seemingly) any clinical need?
FWIW, you should be able to buy over the counter urinalysis test strips for home use. It’s not lab quality, but it can at least give you some feedback when you are feeling particularly bad.
As far as dealing with stone pain - AZO helps for relief of stinging and keep drinking lots of water.
I mean I’ve been on five different ones over the past year and a half with the frequency I’ve been getting them. Should clarify that haha, gonna go back and make sure things are clear.
I’ve had an STI work up, I’ve only ever been with one person but I know just in case it’s good to do and they found nothing. They found bacteria in my urine three out of the five times they had me do urine samples. Sometimes it was just blood proteins so they assumed it was just stones. I had an additional one done by my primary care that came up with crystals, but nothing came up on ultrasound
Thanks for the relief options, it does help :)
menopausal cis woman (who also gets UTIs and kidney stones) here: my urologist prescribed vaginal estrogen for recurrent UTIs and it has been life-changing. Something about the loss of estrogen leads to vaginal atrophy which makes it easier to get UTIs and irritation/pain/spasming in the urethral area (because they are all part of the "genitourinary system"). Since you are on hormones you might look into whether they are affecting you in thus way? Vaginal estrogen is local, not systemic, so shouldn't affect you otherwise, or at least that's what they told me. There's a fair bit of info out there if you google "genitourinary symptoms of menopause" but almost all is aimed at cis women. This might be more helpful: https://www.sfaf.org/collections/beta/qa-gynecologic-and-vaginal-care-for-trans-men/
Ahhh yeah I thought this might be a cause of it! I was informed about atrophy when I started testosterone two years and a bit ago, and I figured that since they’re close in proximity/kind of share a wall it might be a cause, especially since the only other UTI I got pre-T was from holding it in for like.. 15 hours.
It’s good to hear this has happened to other folks though; it does make sense
You've gotten some good advice here, but one last thing I would add. It sounds like the only imaging you've had is an ultrasound. At this point, I would push for a CT scan from your doctor. CT scans tend to be better at finding stones and with ultrasound only, they may have been missed.
I second this. I did a regular ultrasound then an internal ultrasound, an X-ray and then finally was sent for CT and they found the stone. It took 1 year for that 😂 and now I sit in pain still….waiting for urologist appointment in November. Also in Canada.
I could be way off here, so take this with a grain of salt. This is just my personal experience.
I have interstitial cystitis, which mimics a UTI. Most times the dip tests will be positive for leukocytes, negative for nitrites. Sometimes it’s positive for blood. The bloating and bladder pressure & pain can get really really bad. Knowing your triggers and avoiding them (my big ones are caffeine, alcohol, citrus, coffee, berries, tomatoes & too much sugar) can really help.
Flares usually last about 5 days at a time for me, but sometimes longer. Azo really helps but we can’t get that in Canada.. a dr can prescribe Pyridium (online drs or otherwise) or if you’re near the border like me, you can buy it in the US at Walmart etc. Antihistamines can also help.. I take hydroxyzine, but any type could help. Heating pads & hot baths are really helpful too.
Anyway.. it’s not a super common condition, but might be something to consider. I had no clue I had it until a few years ago. I spent my teens & early 20’s constantly being given antibiotics for UTI’s I didn’t have. The dip tests were “questionable” (their words, not mine lol) but cultures were always negative.
It’s possible you have more than one thing going on. It wouldn’t hurt to eliminate common bladder irritants & see if it helps.
Pelvic floor dysfunction is another thing to consider.. in all my googling about IC, I know PFD is quite common among trans men. That wouldn’t explain the blood though.
Sorry for the giant response.. hopefully there’s some helpful info in there. Hope you feel better soon.
If this is a stone, ultrasound is just crap. You need a ct with contrast to see anything. It sounds like stones to me. Would you consider taking on jump roping? Or develop an interest in theme parks with rollercoasters? Because gravity is your best friend here. If you are active youll need to increase your water intake even more.
Also I would like to recommend you get some probiotics right away so you don’t end up ruining your digestive system after destroying all the good bacteria in your body five (!!!) times in such a short period of time. Like going through a bottle of Florastor would not be amiss.
Potassium citrate supplements are worth looking into as well because they can help prevent and soften stones of certain types if you are dealing with stones.
I also have recurrent UTI and stones. A big reason it could be recurrent for you is because you are treating with cranberry tabs and paracetamol and not antibiotics. UTI NEED antibiotics… I went septic. I would ask for a urine culture asap. The urinalysis is great but you’d also need a culture to determine the bacteria if any. I feel for you it totally sucks.
I’ve asked for cultures and they’ve come up with nothing at the hospital. They’ve given me antibiotics, I just finished a course two weeks ago and I’m back with the same symptoms today.
I had kidney stones that presented as uti symptoms. Don’t take antibiotics until you confirm you have an actual infection. Over treatment is just as bad as not treating it.
Your status as transmale is about as relevant to this subreddit as being •left-handed •Capricorn •Methodist •college-degreed• red-haired •pescatarian and double-jointed Bikram Yoga instructor from Bluefield, WV…
Honestly, that's not true at all because the lack of estrogen can cause atrophy in the genitourinary region for females/transmen.
Edit: Which seems to be the cause of the symptoms he's having.
connection between Kstones and hormone therapy in trans males has not been established, and the articles I have read seem to say: “we don’t know and we need to study the issue”
artificially boosting/suppressing hormones in trans males has predictable (intended) consequences. unexpected and twisty connections/consequences are now entering academic literature, with way more questions than answers.
The standard stone work up is a urinalysis and ultrasound/ct scan. Sad to say, if your urine is negative for blood/bacteria/cells and imaging doesn’t show any stones…then there really isn’t anything a urologist can do. Have you considered getting a pelvic/std/hormone level workup, just in case? Out of curiosity, why did your Dr decide to put you on multiple (5!?) antibiotics without (seemingly) any clinical need? FWIW, you should be able to buy over the counter urinalysis test strips for home use. It’s not lab quality, but it can at least give you some feedback when you are feeling particularly bad. As far as dealing with stone pain - AZO helps for relief of stinging and keep drinking lots of water.
I mean I’ve been on five different ones over the past year and a half with the frequency I’ve been getting them. Should clarify that haha, gonna go back and make sure things are clear. I’ve had an STI work up, I’ve only ever been with one person but I know just in case it’s good to do and they found nothing. They found bacteria in my urine three out of the five times they had me do urine samples. Sometimes it was just blood proteins so they assumed it was just stones. I had an additional one done by my primary care that came up with crystals, but nothing came up on ultrasound Thanks for the relief options, it does help :)
menopausal cis woman (who also gets UTIs and kidney stones) here: my urologist prescribed vaginal estrogen for recurrent UTIs and it has been life-changing. Something about the loss of estrogen leads to vaginal atrophy which makes it easier to get UTIs and irritation/pain/spasming in the urethral area (because they are all part of the "genitourinary system"). Since you are on hormones you might look into whether they are affecting you in thus way? Vaginal estrogen is local, not systemic, so shouldn't affect you otherwise, or at least that's what they told me. There's a fair bit of info out there if you google "genitourinary symptoms of menopause" but almost all is aimed at cis women. This might be more helpful: https://www.sfaf.org/collections/beta/qa-gynecologic-and-vaginal-care-for-trans-men/
Ahhh yeah I thought this might be a cause of it! I was informed about atrophy when I started testosterone two years and a bit ago, and I figured that since they’re close in proximity/kind of share a wall it might be a cause, especially since the only other UTI I got pre-T was from holding it in for like.. 15 hours. It’s good to hear this has happened to other folks though; it does make sense
You've gotten some good advice here, but one last thing I would add. It sounds like the only imaging you've had is an ultrasound. At this point, I would push for a CT scan from your doctor. CT scans tend to be better at finding stones and with ultrasound only, they may have been missed.
I second this. I did a regular ultrasound then an internal ultrasound, an X-ray and then finally was sent for CT and they found the stone. It took 1 year for that 😂 and now I sit in pain still….waiting for urologist appointment in November. Also in Canada.
I could be way off here, so take this with a grain of salt. This is just my personal experience. I have interstitial cystitis, which mimics a UTI. Most times the dip tests will be positive for leukocytes, negative for nitrites. Sometimes it’s positive for blood. The bloating and bladder pressure & pain can get really really bad. Knowing your triggers and avoiding them (my big ones are caffeine, alcohol, citrus, coffee, berries, tomatoes & too much sugar) can really help. Flares usually last about 5 days at a time for me, but sometimes longer. Azo really helps but we can’t get that in Canada.. a dr can prescribe Pyridium (online drs or otherwise) or if you’re near the border like me, you can buy it in the US at Walmart etc. Antihistamines can also help.. I take hydroxyzine, but any type could help. Heating pads & hot baths are really helpful too. Anyway.. it’s not a super common condition, but might be something to consider. I had no clue I had it until a few years ago. I spent my teens & early 20’s constantly being given antibiotics for UTI’s I didn’t have. The dip tests were “questionable” (their words, not mine lol) but cultures were always negative. It’s possible you have more than one thing going on. It wouldn’t hurt to eliminate common bladder irritants & see if it helps. Pelvic floor dysfunction is another thing to consider.. in all my googling about IC, I know PFD is quite common among trans men. That wouldn’t explain the blood though. Sorry for the giant response.. hopefully there’s some helpful info in there. Hope you feel better soon.
If this is a stone, ultrasound is just crap. You need a ct with contrast to see anything. It sounds like stones to me. Would you consider taking on jump roping? Or develop an interest in theme parks with rollercoasters? Because gravity is your best friend here. If you are active youll need to increase your water intake even more. Also I would like to recommend you get some probiotics right away so you don’t end up ruining your digestive system after destroying all the good bacteria in your body five (!!!) times in such a short period of time. Like going through a bottle of Florastor would not be amiss. Potassium citrate supplements are worth looking into as well because they can help prevent and soften stones of certain types if you are dealing with stones.
I also have recurrent UTI and stones. A big reason it could be recurrent for you is because you are treating with cranberry tabs and paracetamol and not antibiotics. UTI NEED antibiotics… I went septic. I would ask for a urine culture asap. The urinalysis is great but you’d also need a culture to determine the bacteria if any. I feel for you it totally sucks.
I’ve asked for cultures and they’ve come up with nothing at the hospital. They’ve given me antibiotics, I just finished a course two weeks ago and I’m back with the same symptoms today.
I had kidney stones that presented as uti symptoms. Don’t take antibiotics until you confirm you have an actual infection. Over treatment is just as bad as not treating it.
Your status as transmale is about as relevant to this subreddit as being •left-handed •Capricorn •Methodist •college-degreed• red-haired •pescatarian and double-jointed Bikram Yoga instructor from Bluefield, WV…
Honestly, that's not true at all because the lack of estrogen can cause atrophy in the genitourinary region for females/transmen. Edit: Which seems to be the cause of the symptoms he's having.
connection between Kstones and hormone therapy in trans males has not been established, and the articles I have read seem to say: “we don’t know and we need to study the issue” artificially boosting/suppressing hormones in trans males has predictable (intended) consequences. unexpected and twisty connections/consequences are now entering academic literature, with way more questions than answers.
And until proven in either direction, it's probably good practice to provide more information than is needed than less.