does e coli go away on its own ?
Question
does e coli go away on its own
Randy K. Fisher
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does e coli go away on its own
Answer ( 1 )
Most strains of E. coli are harmless passengers in your gut and they never need to “go away” because they belong there.
When people ask this question they usually mean a diarrhoeal episode or a urinary‑tract infection caused by a pathogenic strain. In many healthy adults the immune system plus good hydration will clear the bug within a week or so without antibiotics.
But it is not always that simple. Shiga‑toxin producing strains (STEC) can cause bloody diarrhoea and kidney problems, and those clearly do *not* just go away in every case. Likewise an E. coli UTI in the bladder can climb to the kidneys and become a serious pyelonephritis if it is not treated.
So yes, mild self‑limiting infections can resolve on their own, yet if symptoms are severe, last more than a couple of days, or if the patient is very young, elderly or immunocompromised, medical care and sometimes antibiotics are needed.