A course of antibiotic medications can typically cure urethritis. As a range of different bacteria can infect the urethra, the best treatment options vary.
Common Treatments for Urethritis
Several medications can clear urethritis and prevent its spread. The right medication for you will depend on what caused your urethritis and whether you’re taking other meds that could interact with the treatment. The most common meds for urethritis include:
- Azithromycin, a single-dose antibiotic.
- Levofloxacin, an antibiotic usually taken daily for a week.
- Doxycycline, an antibiotic usually taken twice daily for a week.
- Ofloxacin, an antibiotic usually taken twice daily for a week.
- Erythromycin, an antibiotic usually taken four times daily for a week.
Your health professional may also prescribe naproxen or another non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication to control your pain.
For mild cases of urethritis antiobiotic pills are usually prescribed or health professionals will sometimes recommend an antibiotic shot. If you’re very ill, you might get your antibiotics in hospital through an IV.
Urethritis symptoms tend to improve within a few days of treatment, but you should take the entire course of medications as directed. This should completely eliminate the infection.
Should I Do Anything Else to Treat Urethritis?
The bacteria that cause urethritis can be shared between sexual partners. Encourage your partners to get treated with you.
Sexually transmitted infections are the most common causes of urethritis. If you got urethritis through an STI, make sure you treat it to prevent reinfection. If your sexual partners have the same STI, they should also seek treatment to make sure they don’t pass that infection back to you.
Healthcare professionals recommend waiting a week after the end of your urethritis treatment to have sex. This reduces the risk of contracting urethritis again.