My mom, 82, had a UTI that wasn't discovered for over a week when she finally crumpled to the floor and was sent to the ER from the nursing home. She has been on antibiotics for a week but now she is in a wheelchair and they say she isn't feeding herself without encouragement. This is not like mom at all. She was always walking and always cleaned her plate. Now not doing either and not responding when I speak to her. She just looks at me and smiles.
Also, she was always right handed, I believe when she had her first stroke, it must have affected her left hand because even though it works fine, she doesn't use it hardly at all. Now, she is not using her right hand. She is using her left. If I ask if she can use the right hand, she does, so I know it does work but she doesn't do it automatically like she used to.
I'm thinking of having her checked for a stroke.
Mom has had UTI's before and has been to the ER because of them before but has always bounced back in about 3 days after anti-biotics start working. This was probably a little over 6 months ago. I've never seen her this bad after one and I'm very concerned for her.
My FIL suffers from repeated UTIs, exacerbated by the fact that he has double incontinence, has to wear incontinence underwear 24/7 and lacks sensation and awareness of the urge at least 30% of the time. So much so that before he moved to the SNF, his urologist actually sent home specimen cups and the collector pans with my SIL to just collect and drop off at the lab to save them a trip to the office.
Even with all of that and the fact that the entire family typically recognizes the signs, he managed to have one undetected for a while. By the time we caught on - he had had it for much longer than he normally did before we knew about it. But as soon as we realized what was happening we got help.
BUT, much like you, this was different. He has had SO many UTIs that we expected a normal recovery. Maybe a little longer due to the length of time that he had the infection. And of course, as we age, it naturally seems to take us longer to recover from pretty much everything. But nothing crazy. But his reaction was completely out of the ordinary. And quite frankly - he never completely recovered.
He ended up in rehab - after a UTI. He did not get out of the bed for over 2 weeks. One in the hospital. Another week and change in rehab. We thought he might not ever. He "rallied" sort of, and bounced back and forth over the next 5 or 6 months. In and out of rehab and home. But what he could do when he left home - he NEVER regained the ability to do.
Since that time (late November last year), he has gone down hill. His cognition seems to have slipped in a number of ways. His mobility has gotten worse. He even seems to be slurring his speech at times - but that could be attributed to the dry mouth he gets from his myriad of medications. Or...if you are me...you wonder constantly if he had a stroke in there somewhere and no one caught it.
So..where am I going with all of this? My answer to your question is...yes and no. A UTI may have kicked it off. And could have been the initial catalyst. You never know what an infection can do to the body. But at the same time, I'm a big believer in trusting your instincts. If you think there is more going on, investigate.
As it stands, we aren't sure right now what is happening. But the downward spiral ensured that my FIL didn't get to return home. Better safe than sorry to check into other possibilities.
I went to the nursing home during work hours yesterday so I could speak to the nurse manager and nurse practitioner. They are going to test her again for a UTI. They are also going to do blood work and will order an MRI for her. They say this won't be quick however since it seems to take a while to get an MRI done. If it was a stroke, I know not much can be done but at least we'll know what happened.
I was able to get her to stand by myself and get into the wheel chair. She is strong enough to do it, but I think she is scared of falling again? She also can eat by herself but I have to tell her to take each bite. She is using her right hand more now. She does not remember her birth date which she always has in the past.
They are already doing occupational therapy with her and I've asked them to start physical therapy to see if she will start walking by herself again.