Unfortunately, symptoms of a Urinary Tract infection (UTI) in the elderly are not as cut and dry as for younger people. In fact, a urinary tract infection in elderly men and women often does not produce any of the symptoms a younger person might experience, and therefore can be tricky to diagnose. Additionally, elderly men and women often have conditions that increase their risk factor for developing UTIs.
A UTI is an infection of the urinary tract, most commonly the bladder. For most people, the need to urinate frequently and/or urgently are two key symptoms of a UTI. So is a burning sensation when you urinate, and urine that is an off color or has an odor. Sometimes, a small amount of blood in the urine is visible. But in older adults, those symptoms are often missing. Instead, older adults may suffer from significant changes in their behavior and mental status, unexplained incontinence and/or fatigue. Older people can get markedly confused, agitated or sleepy. Sometimes they can see things that aren’t there, like bugs crawling on the ceiling. They can have false beliefs and become paranoid.
The best indication of a UTI in the elderly is a sudden change in behavior. This might include a sudden loss of energy or appetite, a sudden onset of confusion, or the inability to do simple tasks such as getting dressed or making breakfast, even when these things were no problem the day before. Other common signs of urinary tract infections in the elderly are sudden urinary incontinence or fever.
Daughter #1
My mom was in the hospital because she started getting agitated and thought her deceased husband was alive and living with her. I’m so glad I called the doctor and got her tested. She had a bad UTI. Her cognitive issues improved once the IV antibiotics kicked in.
Daughter #2
We could always tell that my mother had a UTI – even before the nursing home picked up on it – because of behavioral changes and foul smelling laundry. We always requested that they have her urine tested and it was always positive for infection. I asked the doctor why they can’t put her on a medication immediately so she didn’t have to suffer with it when we know she has it and he explained that there are different strains of infection and the medication is not always the same so you have to wait for the test results which was maddening because it sometimes took a couple of days.
A UTI is the most common cause of a sudden increase in confusion in an older person. The medical community isn’t sure why older people have these heightened behavioral symptoms.
Caregivers play an important role in recognizing a UTI. Caregivers need to be on the lookout for these symptoms:
- Any sudden change in mental status such as confusion, lethargy, hallucinations, restlessness or yelling
- The need to go to the bathroom frequently or urgently
- Complaints of discomfort while urinating
- Cloudy, dark, or strong, foul-smelling urine
- A new onset of incontinence
- Elevated temperature, chills
- Pain
- Increased falls/weakness
Any of these signs should be addressed by a physician.
UTIs can spread to the kidneys and cause damage. When that happens, patients often experience a fever and severe pain. More importantly, the infection could spread to the bloodstream and cause sepsis or even death in some cases. FBN
Cindy Harris is the owner of Comfort Keepers With over 560 independently owned and operated locations, Comfort Keepers is a leader in in-home senior care to promote independent living. Comfort Keepers® is located at 214 N. Sitgreaves St., in Flagstaff. For more information, call 928-774-0888.