Prophylactic Antibiotics

Our daughter is 8 years old and has spina bifida and hydrocephalus.* She has a VP shunt and is high functioning with an S1 lesion.* She self-caths 5 times a day.

Until recently, she was taking 25 mg*of nitrofurantoin every other day.* When she is on the medication, she is mostly infection free.* When we attempt to stop the antibiotics, she soon after gets a bladder*infection.* Last summer, while not taking the antibiotics, she was hospitalized with a kidney infection.* We know that she should not continue to take antibiotics indefinitely.

Does anyone have any advice or experiences to share on this subject?* How often do your kids get bladder infections requiring antibiotic treatment?* What is your criteria for treating with antibiotics versus letting the infection run its course?