Combination of heat and wet underwear increases risk of cystitis in women in summer

MADRID, July 16. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The combination of heat and damp underwear for a long time after visiting beaches and swimming pools increases the risk of developing cystitis in women in the summer, as explained by Raquel Prieto Sánchez, member and member of the Patients and Citizenship Committee of the Spanish Society of Pharmacists Primary Care (SEFAP).

To prevent such cases, the expert stressed the importance of keeping underwear and swimwear dry. “Also, to avoid urinary tract infections in women, it is very important to remember that we should clean ourselves from the vagina to the anus, and not the other way around, drink enough water and urinate frequently, every two to three hours and always after sexual intercourse,” advised Prieto, who pointed out the need to avoid using spermicides, as they can increase the risk of infections, and to change tampons and pads frequently.

As the SEFAP representative noted, the most common symptoms observed in patients with urinary tract infection are a feeling of pain or burning when urinating, frequent and little urination, the presence of urine with a strong odor and dark color, or discomfort in the lower part of the abdomen.

Although in most cases cystitis in healthy women is not serious, the expert recommends that you consult a doctor if the symptoms mentioned appear. “This consultation should be urgent if these symptoms are also accompanied by fever and pain in the lower back or kidneys, because if the infection reaches the kidneys, it becomes a serious infection called pyelonephritis and will require specific treatment with antibiotics,” the pharmacist emphasized. You should also urgently consult a doctor if the symptoms occur in pregnant women, very elderly patients or men.

The SEFAP member stressed that to combat cystitis it is useful to drink at least one and a half litres of water a day, “to help kill bacteria”; and he reminded that not all urinary tract infections require antibiotic treatment, but the decision must be made by a doctor.