Painful bladder syndrome (interstitial cystitis)
Mate tōngamimi kūiti
Painful bladder syndrome (interstitial cystitis) is inflammation of the bladder causing bladder pain and sometimes pelvic pain when your bladder is full. It's a long-term condition.
With painful bladder syndrome, there is no obvious infection in your bladder and antibiotics do not help.
The exact causes of painful bladder syndrome aren't known but many factors may contribute. These include damage to your bladder lining and problems with your pelvic floor muscles. Your immune system attacking your bladder is another possible cause.
Symptoms of painful bladder syndrome
Symptoms can include:
- Pain (particularly when your bladder is full) when weeing (urinating) and during sexual intercourse. You may feel pain in your pelvis and abdomen. Women may also feel pain in their vagina. Men may also feel pain in their scrotum and anus.
- Needing to wee urgently and frequently.
Diagnosing painful bladder syndrome
There is no single test to diagnose painful bladder syndrome. Your general practice team will examine you and ask you questions about your general health. They may also arrange a urine test to look for signs of infection and any abnormal cells.
You may have an ultrasound or CT scan.
You may also need a urodynamic test, which involves filling and emptying your bladder with water while taking pressure measurements.
You may need to be referred for a cystoscopy during which a small camera is passed into the bladder.
Treating painful bladder syndrome
The treatment for painful bladder syndrome is aimed at reducing or getting rid of your symptoms. You may need several treatments or combinations of treatments to relieve your symptoms. These can include physiotherapy, medication and surgery. They can also include filling your bladder with salt water (saline).
Self-care for painful bladder syndrome
Things that may help improve your symptoms include:
- drinking plenty of fluids regularly throughout the day
- keeping a food diary – if you notice certain foods or drinks (like citrus fruits and alcohol) make symptoms worse, avoid them, but ask for medical advice first
- stopping smoking – the chemicals in cigarettes can irritate your bladder
- reducing stress – try exercise, warm baths and mindfulness-based meditation techniques.
HealthInfo recommends the following pages
Written by HealthInfo clinical advisers. Last reviewed April 2023.
Sources
The information in this section comes from the following sources, some of which may be clinically complex or not available to the general public
BPAC – Urinary continence in adults. Retrieved March 2019.
BPAC – Urinary incontinence in women: the management of urinary incontinence in women, Retrieved February 2019.
Canterbury Community HealthPathways – Urinary incontinence in women. Retrieved February 2019.
Cochrane Review – Cranberries for Preventing Urinary Tract Infection. Retrieved April 2024.
Continence Foundation of Australia. Retrieved February 2019.
Continence Foundation of Australia – Pelvic floor muscles in men. Retrieved February 2019.
Continence New Zealand. Retrieved March 2019.
KidsHealth – Urinary tract infection. Retrieved September 2021.
NHS – Bedwetting in children. Retrieved September 2021.
NHS – Cystitis, Retrieved February 2019.
NHS – Interstitial cystitis, Retrieved January 2019.
NHS – Urinary incontinence. Retrieved March 2019.
The British Association of Urological Surgeons. Retrieved March 2019.
The British Association of Urological Surgeons – Urinary infection (adult). Retrieved February 2019.
Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand. Retrieved January 2019.
Image and embedded video sources
Female pelvic floor muscles animated video from Continence Foundation of Australia on YouTube.
Female pelvic floor muscles illustration from Shutterstock (image ID 200938985). June 2018.
Image of elderly couple from Shutterstock (image ID 705198691). September 2019.
Image of woman holding her abdomen from Shutterstock (image ID 1802606767). April 2023.
Image of woman in pain sitting on couch from Shutterstock (image ID 403461826). October 2019.
Image of women reading the newspaper from jk1991 at FreeDigitalPhotos. March 2017.
Male pelvic floor muscles animated video from Continence Foundation of Australia on YouTube.
Urinary system illustration from Shutterstock (image ID 179481320). April 2019.
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Review key: HIURS-53047