Anna Myers, CNP, discusses her approach to preventing UTIs

In a recent interview with Urology Times^®, Anna Myers, CNP, was asked about preventing urinary tract infections (UTIs), as well as the importance of antibiotic stewardship.

“We all have to be very good stewards of antibiotics. There have not been a lot of new antibiotics, and when any new medicines come out, they are so expensive, they are untouchable for many,” Myers said.

Because of this, Myers said, “It's very important to go to the basics. We can improve urinary tract infections considerably with behavioral modification. Let's say a person is not drinking at least a 1 and a half liters of fluids a day. And I'm talking about a person that's able to drink that…If we can increase those fluids to greater than 1 and a half liters, we can improve their symptoms by 90%. Drinking fluids pushes that bacteria out of the bladder that's coming up from the vagina,” Myers said.

Myers also talked about changes in patients’ pH and its effect on the bladder.

“I use pH paper in the office, and I can see what their pH is, and then I can treat that, and then we can see if we've improved their urinary tract infections. [It] just takes a little bit of microtrauma. That tissue is real thin and fragile; that bacteria will get right up in there and cause them a urinary tract infection,” Myers said.