Dysuria is a medical term for difficulty urinating. This urination disorder causes decreased urine output and may be accompanied by pain. In women and in men, dysuria can have different origins.

Dysuria is a urination disorder, or voiding disorder, that is to say an abnormality in the evacuation of urine. Despite the need to urinate, the bladder contraction is not enough to produce sufficient urine output. The decrease in urine output can sometimes be accompanied by pain.

Dysuria should not be confused with other urination disorders such as pollakiuria, which is characterized by frequent urination.

Dysuria can have many explanations. The origin of this urination disorder may however be different in women and in men.

Dysuria in women: what are the specific causes?

In women, dysuria is usuallyinfectious origin. It can be the consequence of several types of infections in the urinary or genital tract. Dysuria can be observed in particular when:

• de cystitis, inflammations of the bladder which are generally of infectious origin;
• cervicitis, inflammation of the cervix which is usually caused by a sexually transmitted infection (STI);
• an urethritis, inflammation of the urethra which is most often caused by a sexually transmitted infection (STI);
• an vulvovaginite, an inflammation of the vulva and vagina that mainly occurs following an infection.

Dysuria in humans: what are the specific causes?

In humans, dysuria is often the result of prostate problem. The most common is thebenign prostatic hyperplasia, which is characterized by an increase in the size of the prostate. A large prostate can cause:

• bladder compression, which causes a frequent need to urinate;
• compression of the urethra, the exit duct of urine, which is the cause of dysuria.

In some rarer cases, dysuria in humans can be caused by other disorders:

• orchi-epididymitis, which corresponds to the association of inflammation of the testes (orchitis) and inflammation of the epididymis (epididymitis);
• a prostatitis, an inflammation of the prostate which may be of infectious origin;
• a prostate tumor, benign or malignant (prostate cancer).

Dysuria: what are the other possible causes?

Although there are specific causes of dysuria in men and women, there are other possible explanations for this urination disorder:

• a interstitial cystitis, or painful bladder syndrome, a form of cystitis whose origin is not yet clear;
• certain spondyloarthropathies, which are inflammatory diseases characterized by joint and extra-articular involvement;
• an allergic reaction, or contact with an irritant agent;
• neurological disease, such as diabetic neuropathy;
• a bladder tumor, especially in cases of bladder cancer.

The consequences and the course of dysuria vary from case to case. The urination disorder can be temporary but can sometimes persist and become chronic.

In some cases, dysuria may be a risk factor for bladder stones. This type of urolithiasis is characterized by the formation of one or more stones in the bladder.

The treatment of dysuria depends on many parameters including the origin of the voiding disorder, its course and the patient’s condition. Medical care can, for example, be based on:

• drug treatment, as an antibiotic therapy for bacterial infection;
• a surgical intervention, especially if an obstruction of the urinary or genital tract is observed.