Expert Says Delay In Diaper Change Exposes Children to Urinary Tract Infection 

A baby getting his diaper changed
cloudy urine and a clear urine inside a container

Samples of Urine

A medical Doctor, Gbenga Adebusoye, on Sunday, revealed that delay in changing children’s soiled diapers and napkins increases their risk of getting Urinary Tract Infection (UTI).

Adebusoye, who disclosed this in an interview with reporters in Jos, explained that bacteria and other infection-causing microbes might enter the urinary tract when the dirty diaper or napkin was not changed in time, thereby causing UTI.

He explained that the Urinary Tract was divided into two ; the upper and lower urinary tract.

A baby getting his diaper changed

“The upper urinary tract consists of the kidney and the urethras, the kidney produces urine and it goes through the urethras into the bladder, and the bladder stores the urine for sometime before there is an urge to get the urine out.

“The lower part consists of the bladder and the urethras, which is the passage in which the urine goes to the exterior.

“If it affects the kidneys and the renal pelvis, it is called the upper urinary tract infection, and if it affects the bladder and the lower urethras, the infection is called the lower urinary tract infection.”

According to him, because the female urethra is shorter compared to the male, it makes it faster for microorganisms to travel up from the entrance into the bladder of the female, making them more prone to having UTI than their male counterpart.

“The closeness of the urethra to the anus in females than in males makes the female more susceptible to UTI, many times what causes contamination could be feces from the anus.

“Therefore, parents and caregivers should ensure they clean the anus from the perineum and past the anus (from inside out, or from the front to the back), especially in females,” he advised.

Deji Ogunsola reports that Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), is an infection along the urinary tract.

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