Developed A UTI While Taking A Z-Pak

Hello and thanks for reaching out. I'm sorry to hear you're going through this!

First and foremost, you want to reach out to your doctor regarding this.

The situation you've described warrants evaluation since It isn't overly common that a UTI develops while currently taking a Z-Pak (azithromycin).

Can A UTI Develop While Taking A Z-Pak?

Developing a UTI (urinary tract infection) while taking an antibiotic like azithromycin isn't common.

Z-Paks are used for all types of infections, and it is true that azithromycin is considered a broad-spectrum antibiotic.

These types are antibiotics are associated with an increased risk of certain infections.

These infections include:

• Clostridium difficile  (i.e. C.diff associated diarrhea)
• Yeast infections

The reason azithromycin isn't associated generally with causing UTIs however, is because it has antibacterial activity against the most common types of bacteria that cause UTIs, which are:

• Escherichia coli (i.e. E.Coli)
• Klebsiella pneumoniae

It's certainly possible you've developed a UTI caused by a bacteria not covered by azithromycin, or even a drug-resistant strain, or it could be a different type of infection altogether.

Additionally, you could be experiencing a different medical condition where the symptoms are closely related, or even the same, as you would experience with a UTI.

Treatment Options

It's hard to give a definitive treatment recommendation for your situation.

Initial antibiotic therapy for UTIs is most often empiric, meaning that certain antibiotics are given based on the assumed causative agent is (i.e. E.coli or K. pneumoniae), and azithromycin generally covers both of those (although azithromycin often isn't the first-line therapy for UTIs).

In most complicated cases, or where there is an additional concern, a urine culture and sensitivity test is completed, to find out exactly what type of bacteria is causing the problem, and what kind of antibiotic that bacteria is sensitive to.

So, the first step for you is to reach out to your doctor, so they can confirm your diagnosis, which again, may be a UTI caused by a bacteria not covered by azithromycin, or it another infection/condition altogether (e.g. a yeast infection, urethritis etc...).

From there, they can determine what your best treatment option is, which may include alternative antibiotics, such as:

• Nitrofurantoin
• Bactrim (sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim)
• Ciprofloxacin
• Levofloxacin
• Cefpodoxime
• Augmentin
• Cefdinir

Final Words

I understand your frustration here!

I hope this answer helps give you some direction and that you start to feel better soon.

I didn't touch on Medrol, which is a steroid, and long-term use of steroids can certainly increase the risk of infections as well. It is unlikely that 3 days into a Medrol Dose Pack is much of a factor in this though.

Please feel free to contact us again with any further questions!