UTI #1...and other stuff.

We knew at age 4 weeks that this wasn't going to be a breezy babyhood for Lou. She had blood in her stool which turned out to be a milk protein allergy. On to expensive formula we went. We had already chosen to cloth diaper to save money, and I was going to pump breast milk. It just wasn't in the cards.

On August 30th, almost 2 months old, she started to feel fevered. I have had two other children, mind you, and fevers have always been nothing but a cold or other viral something or other no one can do anything about. Trust me, I've paid my pediatrician hundreds of dollars to tell me to go home and wait it out. So, instead of going in, I watched and took her temperature. It spiked at 102.6 BUT fell to 98.6. I was confused and had no idea what to think. By 5:00 that evening, she was listless and had been sleeping all day. The fever had come and gone all day.

We called the triage nurse who promptly said take her to the ER. Oh yeah, 100.4 is the watch temp for infants. Never needed to know that in the past, I guess. We get to the suggested ER with 24-hour pediatrics and they get us in immediately. She was up to over 103 rectal temperature.

In the triage, they took a urine sample. It had a high white blood cell/leukocyte count. They started an IV in the crook of her arm and drew blood. It's left there in case she needed fluids or antibiotics. They tell us, because she is less than 60 days old, she has to have a spinal tap to get fluid in case the infection had reached her brain. That was one of the toughest things I'd ever tried not to watch. I've had three epidurals--I know how she felt. Praise God, the infection had not spread to her brain. Several hours later, we had a room.

Now we just had to wait for urine cultures. She was put on two antibiotics. They do wide spectrum until they know what bacteria is causing the infection. I think one was claforin, but let's face it, I was stressed and worried. I don't really remember. The doctors told us all sorts of things at this point. For example: It will take 24-48 hours for the culture, then you can go home. Or, you can count on being here for 7-10 days... We had no idea who to believe. (Count on three days and three nights. At least this has been our experience.)

The doctor suggested a renal ultrasound. We agreed. The results showed hydronephrosis and debris in her right kidney. Again, some doctors were not happy with this report. More on this coming up. The urine culture came up inconclusive...it grew nothing.

I found out one aunt and two of her daughters have renal reflux, which causes UTIs. The first two doctors on rotation found this to be a serious matter. Our third and fourth doctor on rotation seemed to think this highly inconsequential. The fourth doctor sent us home nonchalantly with no antibiotics. 'Don't count her out yet,' he said. Like we should never expect this to happen again. Then he tells us that the debris probably isn't really debris and the hydronephrosis is not an issue either. Could be bad footage?... We go home expecting this will never happen again, an anomaly. My husband, however, is disturbed that we had not been given an antibiotic for the following 7 days. If you've had antibiotics, you know it's ten days, standard practice. Lou had only had 3-4 days worth.

We scheduled a follow-up with her pediatrician and tried to put it behind us.

Lou's Story: Why I'm Doing This

There are numerous web pages devoted to kidney/renal reflux or vesicouretal reflux. I am not going to reference ANY of them here... This is my baby's story. She is almost 6 months and has been through the wringer. We are currently sitting in the hospital, and she's asleep. So, this may be just an intro paragraph.

I will be recounting her signs and symptoms, what the 10 or so different doctors have said through her three hospital says, and our experiences. This may be your story, too. If you've lived through this, you know it can be scary. Or you might be thinking, well heck, it's not freaking cancer! I don't know about you--the reader--as a parent, but her pain is my pain. Her defect is MY defect. I watch and can do so little. I hug but I cannot fix.

This is not a medical document. Do not use this to diagnose. I want to tell it because I want it remembered as it happened. And to let you know you are not alone. And so that you know a fever is not always JUST a fever. Always follow your gut as a parent, as long as your gut tells you not to ignore signs of illness. As long as your gut doesn't abhor doctor visits. I no longer care about the haughty voices of doctors who look at you and talk to you like you may be wasting their time. My babies are more important than that.