Also called: UTI
Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About Urinary Tract Infections
The urinary system is the body's drainage system for removing wastes and extra water. It includes two kidneys, two ureters, a bladder, and a urethra. Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are the second most common type of infection in the body.
You may have a UTI if you notice:
- Pain or burning when you urinate
- Fever, tiredness, or shakiness
- An urge to urinate often
- Pressure in your lower belly
- Urine that smells bad or looks cloudy or reddish
- Pain in your back or side below the ribs
People of any age or sex can get UTIs. But about four times as many women get UTIs as men. You're also at higher risk if you have diabetes, need a tube to drain your bladder, or have a spinal cord injury.
If you think you have a UTI it is important to see your doctor. Your doctor can tell if you have a UTI with a urine test. Treatment is with antibiotics.
It sits within Kidneys and Urinary System and Infections.
The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on Urinary Tract Infections
984 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- Study of AU-007, A Monoclonal Antibody That Binds to IL-2 and Inhibits IL-2Rα Binding, in Patients With Unresectable Locally Advanced or Metastatic CancerAulos Bioscience, Inc.
- The Cancer Connected Access and Remote Expertise Beyond Walls Program to Provide In-Home Cancer Treatment and Improve Treatment Satisfaction in Cancer Patients Living in the Florida Panhandle and Surrounding AreasMayo Clinic
- Clinical Performance Evaluation of the QIAstat-Dx® cUTI Plus AMRQIAGEN Gaithersburg, Inc
- Cefepime/Enmetazobactam for Bacteremic Complicated Urinary Tract InfectionsIRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna
- IDOV-Immune for Advanced Solid TumorsViroMissile, Inc.
- Daily Nitrofurantoin Versus Bladder Fulguration Plus Daily Nitrofurantoin for Women With Recurrent Urinary Tract InfectionsUniversity of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Research already completed
- Evaluation of Quality-of-Life Improvements Using UroShield DeviceUniversity of Michigan
- A Study of Vaccination With 9-valent Extraintestinal Pathogenic Escherichia Coli Vaccine (ExPEC9V) in the Prevention of Invasive Extraintestinal Pathogenic Escherichia Coli Disease in Adults Aged 60 Years And Older With a History of Urinary Tract Infection in the Past 2 YearsJanssen Research & Development, LLC
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- About Urinary Tract HealthEunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Bladder Infection (Urinary Tract Infection -- UTI) in AdultsNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
- Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
- Urinary Tract InfectionsDepartment of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health
Diagnosis and Tests
- Bacteria Culture TestNational Library of Medicine
- Cystoscopy and UreteroscopyNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
- Epithelial Cells in UrineNational Library of Medicine
- Mucus in UrineNational Library of Medicine
- Nitrites in UrineNational Library of Medicine
- Urinary Tract ImagingNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
- When You Visit Your Doctor -- Recurrent Urinary Tract InfectionsHarvard Medical School
Prevention and Risk Factors
- CranberryNational Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
Related Issues
- Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection BasicsCenters for Disease Control and Prevention
- Chronic Bladder Infection: Is There a Cure?Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: PyelonephritisNational Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Urinary Tract InfectionsNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Urinary Tract Infections. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Urinary Tract Infections, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.