GC: n
S: MAYO – https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/urinary-tract-infection/symptoms-causes/syc-20353447 (last access: 12 October 2022); WebMD – https://www.webmd.com/women/guide/your-guide-urinary-tract-infections (last access: 12 October 2022).
N: 1. – urinary (adj): 1570s, from Modern Latin urinarius, from Latin urina (see urine).
– tract (n): “area,” mid-15c., “period or lapse of time,” from Latin tractus “track, course, space, duration,” lit, “a drawing out or pulling,” from stem of trahere “to pull, draw,” from PIE root *tragh- “to draw, drag, move” (source also of Slovenian trag “trace, track,” Middle Irish tragud “ebb;” perhaps with a variant form *dhragh-; see drag (v.)). The meaning “stretch of land or water” is first recorded 1550s. Specific U.S. sense of “plot of land for development” is recorded from 1912; tract housing attested from 1953.
– infection (n): late 14c., “infectious disease; contaminated condition;” from Old French infeccion “contamination, poisoning” (13c.) and directly from Late Latin infectionem (nominative infectio) “infection, contagion,” noun of action from past participle stem of Latin inficere “to spoil, to stain” (see infect). Meaning “communication of disease by agency of air or water” (distinguished from contagion, which is body-to-body communication), is from 1540s.
. Abbreviation: UTI.
2. urinary tract infection (UTI), in humans, inflammation of the renal system characterized by frequent and painful urination and caused by the invasion of microorganisms, usually bacteria, into the urethra and bladder. Infection of the urinary tract can result in either minor or major illness. For example, an attack of cystitis—inflammation of the bladder—may cause only a small amount of pain and discomfort, whereas infection that spreads into the upper urinary tract may lead to acute complications, such as obstruction of the ureter and kidney failure, or to chronic conditions, such as incontinence or kidney scarring that gradually progresses to kidney failure. Severe or recurrent UTI can result in lifelong discomfort and decrease in quality of life.
3. UTIs are very common and can occur in people of all ages. However, women are affected about 30 times more often than men; roughly one in five women experiences a UTI in her lifetime. Girls and women are at high risk of infection because of the short female urethra. In addition, sexual intercourse, especially when a diaphragm is used for contraception, and pregnancy, when there may be partial stagnation of the urine from pressure on the urinary tract, significantly increase the susceptibility of women to UTI. Many women experience recurrent UTIs, and those who have had three or more infections are likely to have frequent recurrences throughout their lifetimes. It is unclear why some women are at high risk for repeated infection. There is evidence that certain antigens of the P blood group system that are expressed on the surfaces of cells lining the urinary tract act as adhesion sites for bacteria, thereby facilitating infection. Postmenopausal women may have recurrent UTIs because decreasing levels of estrogen cause thinning of the vaginal epithelium, thereby reducing defense against invasion by microorganisms.
4. Other populations at risk of infection include men over age 50, in whom onset of prostatic disease may lead to urinary infection. Infants also are at risk, since diapers can facilitate the entry of organisms into the urethra. In addition, people affected by kidney stones, diabetes, disorders of the immune system, and abnormalities of the renal system are at increased risk of infection. In some patients, the introduction of a catheter into the bladder may be necessary to relieve urethral obstruction; however, this procedure increases risk of UTI.
5. Urinary tract infection is a broad term used to describe both microbial colonization of the urine and invasion of the kidney, bladder, or other structures of the urinary tract.
S: 1. OED – https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=urinary; https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=tract; https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=infection (last access: 12 October 2022); TERMIUM PLUS – https://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2alpha/alpha-eng.html?lang=eng&i=1&srchtxt=infection+urinaire&index=alt&codom2nd_wet=1#resultrecs (last access: 12 October 2022). 2 to 4. EncBrit – https://www.britannica.com/science/urinary-tract-infection (last access: 12 October 2022). 5. TERMIUM PLUS – https://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2alpha/alpha-eng.html?lang=eng&i=1&srchtxt=infection+urinaire&index=alt&codom2nd_wet=1#resultrecs (last access: 12 October 2022).
SYN: urinary infection
S: GDT – https://gdt.oqlf.gouv.qc.ca/ficheOqlf.aspx?Id_Fiche=8373235 (last access: 12 October 2022)
