Immune Mediated Chronic Bladder Infections

By Alfred J. Plechner, D.V.M.

Has your dog or cat ever suffered from chronic bladder infections that when the urine was tested, only inflammatory cells were present including white blood cells and you were told your pet has a urinary tract infection?

The treatment for this is quite simple and often a general antibiotic will be prescribed and the bladder infection may subside but the “bladder infection” returns at a later date.

Due to the fact that the bladder infection that has returned, your health care professional will often take another urine sample and send it into the laboratory to see if an unusual bacteria may be present and with the growth of this bacteria, the colony of bacteria will be exposed to several different kinds of bacteria to see if one of the many antibiotics applied will specifically kill this unusual bacteria.

Often a bladder x-ray and or an ultra sound will be done to make sure there are no bladder stones or bladder tumors.

If the bladder scans show no complications, then you look to the results of the urine culture and sensitivity in order to find an answer to using a specific antibiotic that will kill this unusual bacteria.

If this is the case, the bladder infection should subside and not reoccur, however in many instances the urine culture and sensitivity may show no bacterial growth even though inflammatory cells were found in the original urinalysis.

What does this indicate?

This indicates that your dog or cat may have an endocrine immune imbalance that has allowed for an immune mediated, chronic bladder infection to be recurrent.

Often this imbalance may be easily seen by merely lifting up the upper lip of your dog or cat and seeing a small redline right at the junction of where the gum reflects upon the enamel of the tooth.

This is usually visible in 40 % of the dogs and 70 % in cats with this imbalance.

The imbalance may still exist without the development of the red line.

If this is the case, it is easy to have your healthcare professional do an endocrine immune blood test and send it to a special laboratory that is qualified to do this type of testing.

That specific Laboratory is listed here.

Note: please realize I am not associated with this laboratory, but at this time, is the only veterinary laboratory that has the ability to provide credible laboratory results.

The test results will indicate that your pet has a hormone antibody imbalance indicating a cortisol imbalance, elevated adrenal estrogen, either a primary T3 T4 deficiency or normal thyroid hormones that the elevated estrogen will bind the receptor sites for the hormones and render them unavailable for use in the body.

The B and T lymphocytes are not deficient but are deregulated and not only lose their ability to protect your pet, but will lose recognition of self tissue and can begin to attack the normal tissue in your pet which is referred to as autoimmunity.

This also may be the cause of allergies and cancer.

You can now understand why so often those products that are touted to stop hyper immunity in all reality may further deregulate the immune system and only end up hurting the patient.

Please measure this endocrine immune deficiency before initiating you use of immune stimulants!

The only real deficiency occurring with the immune system lies with the lack of antibody production by the B lymphocyte.

In animals when this occurs, all the immunoglobulins will be deficient including the mucous membrane antibody IgA whether secretory or circulatory. (Note: people apparently have subgroups of B cells and show different variations in levels of IgA, IgG IgM, IgD and IgE.)

Of clinical interest in animals, when the IgA level is deficient, this may cause your pet to have vaccine reactions, insect sensitivities and food allergies.

When this endocrine immune imbalance occurs causing an IgA imbalance, impact areas are often genetically predetermined.

When this occurs, and the bladder seems to be the genetic target or impact area, a food allergy can cause a chronic, immune mediated, bladder, infection due to the IgA imbalance as can a vaccine or insect bite.

It is so very important for you to realize even with the most innocent organic, natural food diet that you have introduced to your pet, you may have caused a severe immune mediated reaction in the bladder.

Please note that food sensitivities may cause a primary upset in the stomach and intestines.

The food may also cause a secondary effect which may cause itching of the face, ears, feet and skin of the ventral abdomen where mass cells, that contain histamine, will degranulate and cause inflammation at those sights.

If one ear or eye appears more involved than the other, it probably relates to the presence of more mast cell in that area as opposed to the other area.

Thirdly, the IgA imbalance caused by foods may cause a chronic, immune mediated bladder infection.

The reaction in the bladder may be so subtle that a urine sample might need to be tested for occult blood (unseen by the naked eye) as opposed to copious amounts of visible blood including constant urination because the bladder is inflamed.

Testing this endocrine immune imbalance with a simple blood test is the only way you will be able to control this condition and while you are doing the testing please look at the article on elimination diets so that this will help you find the proper food to feed your pet in order to help avoid immune mediated chronic bladder infections.

Clinical Case 1

This involved an 3 year old, male neutered, English Bulldog with chronic nonresponsive bladder “infections” that had lost a tremendous amount of weight also indicating tremendous muscle wasting. The owners were close to putting the dog to sleep because nothing had helped, and they did not want to see him suffer.

 Cortisol = 0.26 ug/dl

 1 to 2.5 ug/dl

 Total Estrogen = 25.31 pg/ml

 20 to 25 pg/ml

 T3 = 49 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 T4 = 1.27 ng/dl

 2 to 4.5 ng/dl

 IgA = 46 ng/dl

 70 to 170 ng/dl

 IgM = 510 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 IgG = 653 ng/dl

 1000 to 2000 ng/dl

SUPPLEMENTED TEST RESULTS

 Cortisol = 2.1 ug/dl

 1 to 2.5 ug/dl

 Total Estrogen = 24.95 pg/ml

 20 to 25 pg/ml

 T3 = 160 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 T4 = 4.1 ng/dl

 2 to 4.5 ng/dl

 IgA = 81 ng/dl

 70 to 170 ng/dl

 IgM = 176 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 IgG = 1823 ng/dl

 1000 to 2000 ng/dl

Even using plant based digestive enzymes, probiotics, antibiotics, vitamin C, cranberry juice and other immune modulators, with the IgA deficiency nothing could be absorbed through the gut wall to correct his endocrine immune imbalance.

I have also found with many of these cases, as have many other medical health care professionals, that the primary hormone supplementations need to be done first without adding any other supplements at this time. Many of these supplements whether natural or not, homeopathic or holistic often neutralize the good effects of the replacement hormone therapy. It is not to say, don’t use these supplements, it is only to say wait until the endocrine immune imbalance has been corrected, before you begin one supplement at a time for 7 days for the first time. Nothing may happen adversely until the 7th day, when a bad reaction does occur. This is a delayed reaction you need to be aware of that will occur with foods and with supplements even if they are "natural"!

Clinical Case 2

This was a 2 year old, male neutered cat with chronic bladder infections with crystal production. The cat was scheduled to have the tip of his penis removed so that the abnormal crystals would pass more freely without causing a urinary obstruction.

 Cortisol = 0.51 ug/dl

 1 to 2.5 ug/dl

 Total Estrogen = 25.23 pg/ml

 20 to 25 pg/ml

 T3 = 120 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 T4 = 2.6 ng/dl

 2 to 4.5 ng/dl

 IgA = 53 ng/dl

 70 to 170 ng/dl

 IgM = 820 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 IgG = 793 ng/dl

 1000 to 2000 ng/dl

SUPPLEMENTED TEST RESULTS

 Cortisol = 1.6 ug/dl

 1 to 2.5 ug/dl

 Total Estrogen = 24.98 pg/ml

 20 to 25 pg/ml

 T3 = 170 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 T4 = 4.25 ng/dl

 2 to 4.5 ng/dl

 IgA = 79 ng/dl

 70 to 170 ng/dl

 IgM = 169 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 IgG = 1741 ng/dl

 1000 to 2000 ng/dl

This patient had the IgA imbalance that not only caused his immune mediated bladder infection but also IBS.

Over the years, I have tried to show my profession and my interns the fact that this problem often comes from a hormone antibody imbalance that causes a deficient IgA and no protection for the bladder and kidneys. In 70% of these cats and 30% of these dogs that have this imbalance, will be easily seen by a gingival flare which is where the gums reflect onto the enamel of the teeth. This indicates a mucous membrane antibody deficiency called IgA.

Since this deficiency occurs throughout the body, this also effects the intestines and when it does in these patients with this immune mediated bladder infections, it allows for easier absorption of carbohydrate foods than protein foods. The importance of this is that the increase carbohydrate absorption may lead to an alkaline urine PH and allow for many soluble minerals to precipitate out as urinary crystals and stones.

Clinical Case 3

A 36 lb., spayed female, 4 year old Beagle that has had bladder infections from the time she was 6 month old. The bladder infections would come and go and xrays indicated nothing while urine cultures indicated very little.

 Cortisol = 5.6 ug/dl

 1 to 2.5 ug/dl

 Total Estrogen = 35.17 pg/ml

 20 to 25 pg/ml

 T3 = 49 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 T4 = 1.0 ng/dl

 2 to 4.5 ng/dl

 IgA = 49 ng/dl

 70 to 170 ng/dl

 IgM = 659 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 IgG = 821 ng/dl

 1000 to 2000 ng/dl

SUPPLEMENTED TEST RESULTS

 Cortisol = 0.6 ug/dl

 1 to 2.5 ug/dl

 Total Estrogen = 34.99 pg/ml

 20 to 25 pg/ml

 T3 = 131 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 T4 = 2.95 ng/dl

 2 to 4.5 ng/dl

 IgA = 76 ng/dl

 70 to 170 ng/dl

 IgM = 159 ng/dl

 100 to 200 ng/dl

 IgG = 1307 ng/dl

 1000 to 2000 ng/dl

It is interesting for you to remember that most of urinalysis did not show an infection. These immune mediated bladder inflammations came from the imbalance however with an IgA deficiency this will allow the patient to create food sensitivities and each time this patient was given a treat or snack from the table that she was sensitive to, her bladder inflammation would occur.

For those of you that have pets that have “chronic bladder infections” please realize with a defective IgA which is present in all the mucous membranes of the body, and the wrong food can cause catastrophic disease at any place the body that is not protected by proper amounts of IgA. Hydrolyzed protein and grain free diets usually will not be the answer.

Please also realize by merely changing foods may help for a while, however without identifying and correcting this syndrome, the day may come when no food on earth will be tolerated by your pet.

Please remember it takes very little estrogen to cause major catastrophic diseases. Be very careful feeding foods that contain estrogen to a patients that have my imbalance. There is a list of foods that contain natural estrogens on this website for your consideration.

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