Research Warns Immune System Overreaction May Enable Recurrent UTIs

(Newswire.net — December 2, 2021) Orlando, FL — Health experts are increasingly stressing the relevance of maintaining a strong immune system. It is important to note that when it malfunctions, it could lead to certain undesirable health outcomes.

A study has shown that when the immune system ends up overdoing its response to an initial urinary tract infection, it may trigger recurrent UTIs.

This research was carried out by scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. 

It involved mice as subjects and showed that severe inflammatory responses to an initial UTI trigger bladder damage. Further, they may allow infection to persist longer. 

Following one to two weeks of infection, additional changes happen to the bladder wall leaving mice more susceptible to later infection. The study shows that when the immune system is suppressed during initial infection, these vulnerabilities are also lessened. 

The findings of this interesting study were published in PLoS Pathogens. 

“We found markers in the mice that may one day help us identify patients vulnerable to recurrent infection and refine our treatment strategies,” says lead author Thomas J. Hannan, DVM, Ph.D. 

“There were infection-fighting elements in the immune responses of some mice that we may, for example, one day be able to trigger with vaccines for vulnerable patients.”

The research was carried out at the Center for Women’s Infectious Disease Research at the School of Medicine.

It is worth noting that UTIs happen to millions of people annually. While antibiotics are the primary treatment for the infection, there is also a growing concern for antibiotic resistance. 

“Women and infants are at greatest risk for UTIs, and chronic and recurrent infections are common,” says Scott Hultgren, Ph.D., the center’s director, and the Helen L. Stoever Professor of Molecular Microbiology. 

“The diagnosis and treatment of UTIs in the United States are estimated to cost $1.6 billion annually. 

Today, scientists are increasingly studying the remedies potentially helpful in reducing the risk of UTIs. It is important to note that the increasing use and demand for antibiotics continues to increase due to the skyrocketing rates of infection.

Aside from antibiotic resistance, this type of medication has been found to potentially cause negative effects on immune system health. There are all-natural remedies like the use of D-mannose experts found to be helpful in warding off the infection. 

D-mannose is a therapeutic sugar found in cranberry juice, which is a popular remedy for infection. This harmless sugar has been found to bind with the UTI-causing bacteria and prevent them from triggering an infection.

Formulas like Divine Bounty D-mannose are widely resorted to nowadays by individuals with recurrent infections. (https://www.amazon.com/D-Mannose-600mg-Cranberry-Dandelion-Extract/dp/B01LX5KGF0)