Symptoms of cystitis

The bladder is a hollow organ located in the pelvis that serves as a reservoir for urine, which is produced and then excreted through the urethra.

If, for any reason, inflammation occurs in the urethra, then the infection ascends into the bladder, and cystitis, an inflammation of the bladder, is formed.

Cystitis is an inflammatory process, which in most cases is of bacterial origin. Most often, the disease occurs in women, due to the anatomical features of the location of the urethra, but men and children also fall ill with cystitis. The first symptoms are usually identical for both sexes, but depending on the form and stage of the disease, the symptoms may appear to a greater or lesser extent. Sometimes cystitis is latent (asymptomatic), which, however, does not reduce the risk of complications.

If the treatment of cystitis is started in the acute phase, then the signs of the disease can be eliminated as early as 3-4 days, and the disease can be completely eliminated in about a week.

In order to immediately begin treatment, it is necessary to diagnose the disease in time, and for this it is necessary to know what the manifestation of cystitis is at different stages of the disease.

Common manifestations

Microorganisms entering the bladder due to their adherence to the mucous membrane, in violation of urodynamics or a decrease in the resistance of the bladder wall to bacterial invasion, cause irritation and swelling of the mucous membrane, and this leads to the development of a group of typical symptoms. Meanwhile, the manifestation of the disease directly depends on its stage.

The main signs of acute cystitis can be described as follows:

• frequent and painful urination, frequent false urge to urinate;
• pain in the bladder and perineum;
• it is possible to release blood at the end of the act of urination;
• urine becomes cloudy, due to the presence of a large number of bacteria, leukocytes, erythrocytes.

Acute cystitis is rarely accompanied by fever. The appearance of such and chills in acute cystitis indicate the development of ascending pyelonephritis (reflux-pyelonephritis) due to the occurrence of vesicoureteral reflux.

A feature of cystitis is that it always starts suddenly. The first symptom of the disease is frequent and painful urination. Sometimes the interval between urges can be reduced to 15-20 minutes, and the pain spreads to the entire lower abdomen, lower back and perineum. The pain, as a rule, has a baking or burning character. In most cases, the cause of pain impulses is the inflamed mucosa, which causes contraction of the detrusor muscle and an increase in intravesical pressure.

Radiation cystitis (occurs against the background of radiation therapy for oncological diseases of the pelvic organs) occurs due to a violation of the blood supply to the organ under the influence of radiation, with a change in the state of the mucous membrane, which contributes to further infection of the bladder.

The chronic form of cystitis is characterized by a diverse clinical picture – from mild discomfort in the lower abdomen to severe pain in the projection area of ​​the bladder.

Periods of remission can last for several years, while others experience exacerbations almost every month. As a rule, exacerbation of chronic cystitis is less painful than the very first attack.

Manifestations in women

In women, cystitis is most often the result of infection with strains of Escherichia coli or a hormonal imbalance. Changing the amount of female sex hormones affects the characteristics of vaginal secretions, which in turn affects the survival of bacteria. Therefore, at certain periods of life, the female body becomes more susceptible to pathogenic bacteria.

First of all it is:

• change of phases of the menstrual cycle;
• pregnancy;
• menopause;
• hysterectomy (amputation of the uterus).

Regardless of what caused cystitis, in women the disease is expressed by symptoms typical of cystitis: pain during urination, pain in the lower abdomen and sometimes in the lower back, weakness. As the disease progresses, urinary incontinence may be added to the general symptoms, and cervical cystitis is usually accompanied by dysuria (difficulty in excreting urine), against which severe edema may appear. Severe cystitis often occurs with signs characteristic of intoxication: nausea, vomiting, fever. With hemorrhagic cystitis, an admixture of blood is found in the urine, and with purulent cystitis, along with turbidity of the urine, flakes and purulent clots are noticeable. Interstitial cystitis (syndrome of a painful bladder), although it has a non-infectious nature, is manifested by similar symptoms. The peculiarity of this form of the disease: the pain disappears after emptying the bladder and increases as it fills.

Symptoms of the acute phase of the disease increase within a few days, and after about a week, if left untreated, subside. The disease itself in this case becomes chronic.

Against the backdrop of pregnancy

Cystitis in pregnant women is quite common. Approximately 10% of expectant mothers develop inflammation of the bladder, which usually presents with classic symptoms. As a rule, the disease occurs in the early stages of pregnancy. The onset of the disease is facilitated by a decrease in immunity, a violation of the hormonal background, an increase in the uterus, and a deterioration in the blood supply to the bladder. Often, cystitis in pregnant women is manifested by erased symptoms. Some may have slight pressure in the lower abdomen and a very frequent urge to urinate, others have more pain, urinary incontinence appears, urine may be bloody and have a pungent odor.

If the disease is not treated, then there is a high risk of developing kidney disease. Female cystitis is characterized by frequent relapses. In about half of the patients, an acute attack of the disease recurs within 12 months after completion of the course of treatment.

Against the backdrop of menstruation

In many girls and women, relapses of cystitis occur before the onset of the menstrual cycle. This is due to changes in the hormonal background and microflora of the vagina.

Cystitis, which developed directly on critical days, as a rule, is bacterial in nature. In time, not washed off menstrual flow or not replaced sanitary pads (tampons) create fertile ground for the development of bacteria that cause inflammation of the bladder.

Cystitis that occurs after menstruation can be caused by a sexually transmitted infection, thrush, an allergy to hygiene products, or be the result of menstrual flow entering the urethra.

Regarding the symptoms, cystitis caused by critical days, as a rule, proceeds with typical symptoms, but sometimes it can be accompanied by algomenorrhea (very painful menstruation), nervous tension, irritability, depression, heaviness in the lower abdomen.

Against the backdrop of sex life

Often inflammation of the bladder coincides in time with the onset of sexual activity. This relationship is commonly referred to as honeymoon cystitis. In addition, signs of acute cystitis may appear in women who are sexually active or if partners do not adhere to the rules of hygiene before and after sex.

The disease provoked by sex makes itself felt already 8-10 hours after sexual intercourse. At home, it is possible to identify the presence of inflammation of the bladder by typical signs: burning, frequent urge to go to the toilet, pulling the lower abdomen, urine becomes cloudy, sometimes blood clots are visible in it.

If, in addition to the typical signs of cystitis, itching, profuse white, yellow or brown discharge, you should immediately go to the gynecologist. Similar symptoms may indicate that a sexually transmitted disease has led to cystitis. If vaginal itching appears, curdled discharge and burning appear, it may be candida cystitis.

Signs in men

The main cause of cystitis in men is a violation of urodynamics that occurs against the background of obstructive urological diseases, in particular prostatic hyperplasia or cancer. And it is very important to recognize the disease in time so that it does not serve as the basis for more serious diseases, such as inflammation of the kidneys.

While intestinal bacteria are the main cause of infection in women, in men, cystitis most often develops against the background of an enlarged prostate gland. Clinical symptoms resemble those of cystitis in women. The initial stage is manifested by frequent urge to urinate, but each time with a small volume of urine. The very act of urination is accompanied by a burning sensation. Sometimes pain occurs only at the end of urination. Urine becomes cloudy and has a strong odor. In a more advanced form, cystitis causes back pain, fever, and traces of blood or bleeding appear in the urine, which indicates the complexity of the process and the formation of secondary inflammation above the bladder.

After about a week, the symptoms of acute cystitis in men may go away on their own, but this should not be regarded positively. If antibacterial or other necessary therapy was not used, and the signs of the disease disappeared, this indicates that cystitis has passed into a latent chronic form and, under the influence of certain factors, may worsen. If the treatment of acute cystitis was carried out incorrectly or the man interrupted the therapy, the disease will go into a relapsing form with frequent relapses and a subsequent complication in the form of dysfunction of the genitourinary system.

Manifestations in children

Don’t be fooled into thinking that cystitis only affects adults. In children, this disease is quite common. In addition, the same statistics remain as among the adult population: girls get sick about 5 times more often than boys.

Cystitis in children mostly occurs with classic clinical symptoms. But if schoolchildren can already clearly explain what creates discomfort for them, then parents should guess on their own about the presence of a disease in young children. And the sooner mothers and fathers show the child to the doctor, the lower the risk of complications, for example, in the form of the same pyelonephritis. To prevent this from happening, it is very important for parents to know how the disease manifests itself in children in the earliest stages.

Pain. The first sign of acute cystitis in a child is a urinary disorder. As in adults, it becomes more frequent and is accompanied by pain. Older children may complain of burning, cramping before or during urination. Sometimes, by the behavior of the child, one can notice that urination is difficult for him: in order to completely empty the bladder, he has to strain. A drop of blood may appear at the end of urination in boys.

Frequency. A sick child is disturbed by frequent urge to urinate, in severe cases every 15 minutes, while the volume of urine excreted is extremely small, or the urge to urinate is false. Sometimes boys and girls experience urinary incontinence or children, on the contrary, go to the toilet less often than usual (due to spasm of the urethra and fear of burning).

Color. Any change in the color of children’s urine for parents should serve as an alarm. With cystitis, the urine becomes cloudy, often clots of mucus or an admixture of blood are visible in it.

In infants, signs of cystitis are much more difficult to recognize. But attentive parents can replace that the crumbs have increased urination, the baby has become restless and cries when pissing, urine marks on the diaper become darker. All this indicates an inflammation of the bladder. In many cases, against the background of the disease in young children, the body temperature rises.

Chronic cystitis in children is mostly asymptomatic. Sometimes accompanied by urinary incontinence, however, adults often attribute this to age-related features.

If you notice signs in yourself or a loved one that resemble the symptoms of cystitis, you should immediately seek medical help. This is the only way to avoid the transition of inflammation into a chronic process and prevent serious consequences.

Sources of