Urinary pain

Pain during urination is typical in most cases of damage to the lower urinary tract, as well as problems in the organs of the reproductive system, both in men and women. It is necessary to clearly record the period in which pain appears during urination. Knowing this period of pain appearance, you can make correct preliminary assumptions of the main diagnosis. So, pain can appear before the start of urination, after completion, or accompany the entire process of urine excretion.

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What causes pain when urinating?

Very briefly and very clearly, the reasons underlying painful urination can be presented in the form of several large blocks:

• urological diseases;
• venereal diseases;
• gynecological diseases;
• pathologies of the male genitourinary system;
• urolithiasis.

Each of the specified blocks includes many diseases, sometimes forming a combined diagnosis. The true cause of painful urination can only be established through accurate diagnostics using laboratory tests and detailed instrumental examination.

There are a few more important details to note. When sudden and sharp pain occurs during urination, seeing a doctor should be a priority. Such manifestation of pain can be the beginning of the movement of a stone in the urethra or a violent inflammatory process in the bladder cavity. In these cases, the success of the treatment process directly depends on the promptness of medical intervention.

Pain at different moments during urination

Knowing that the pain appears shortly before the start of urination, we can assume that it is caused by the stretching of the filled bladder and that this is the reason. This leads to another assumption that the main diagnosis will be directly related to the bladder. Most likely, it is cystitis. Additional diagnostic methods, both instrumental and laboratory, will help confirm the correctness of the assumption or refute it.

Pain preceding urination is also characteristic of diseases caused by oncological lesions of the bladder. There is such a concept as "shrunken bladder". In this case, it means a decrease in the volume of the bladder due to pathological processes occurring in it for a long time. Shrunken bladder should be included in the differential diagnosis before making an accurate diagnosis in patients over 50 years old.

Speaking about pain during urination, two moments should also be distinguished. Pain that appears at the very beginning of urine flow indicates damage to the upper section of the urethra, which can be caused by an infectious nature or the formation of stones. Similar pain during urination can be provoked by urethral polyps in women, in men such pain appears with acute urethritis.

Painful urination, throughout the entire urine outflow, until the process is completely completed, accompanies one of the most common diseases - cystitis. Patients complain of cutting pain during urination, when a strong burning sensation is felt throughout the entire urethra. The possibility of developing an oncological lesion of the bladder should not be excluded with this type of pain.

It remains to consider one more variant of the appearance of pain associated with the process of urine outflow - pain after completion of urination. A similar characteristic symptom is found in diseases associated with the prostate gland. The cervical region of the bladder, affected by an inflammatory process, blocked by a stone or an oncological neoplasm, is accompanied by the appearance of pain at the very end or immediately after completion of urination. Thus, there is a logical connection with the fact that, decreasing in volume, the bladder provokes pain syndrome. That is why it is important, when visiting a doctor, to give a clear idea not only of the nature of the pain, but also of the moment of its appearance.

Diagnosis of painful urination

When visiting a doctor, you should pay attention to the location of the main pain. By indicating the location of the painful area, the patient helps to facilitate the main diagnosis. So, pain during urination can affect the perineum (typical for prostatitis), the urethra (for urethritis) or the suprapubic area (more often for cystitis). The clearer and more detailed the patient's explanation, the higher the probability of a quick correct diagnosis.

The pain may not be local, but may radiate in different directions. In case of urolithiasis, complaints are received about pain during urination, radiating to the penis (if the patient is a man) or to the clitoris (if we are talking about a woman). The presence of such a complaint immediately indicates the disease and if the patient is not embarrassed to indicate this type of pain, then the diagnosis will not take much time.

Pain during urination that spreads to the lumbar region or sides indicates an ascending inflammatory process that already affects the higher parts of the urinary system - the ureters and kidneys.

Painful urination rarely goes away against the background of general well-being. As a rule, an increase in body temperature and general malaise are not excluded. In urine, the naked eye can notice the presence of impurities, such as turbidity, flakes, streaks of blood or sand. In severe cases, urinary retention occurs, up to a complete cessation of its outflow. The opposite situation can develop, when urinary incontinence is observed.

After a visual examination of the patient and a conversation with him, a course of laboratory tests is prescribed, among which the most informative should be considered a general urine test, general and clinical blood tests. Of the instrumental methods, an ultrasound of the genitourinary system and radiography of the urinary system with a contrast agent are prescribed.

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How to treat pain when urinating?

It is definitely necessary to seek help from specialists for an accurate diagnosis of the situation. The course of treatment will depend on the affected organ and the severity of the pathological process. The choice in favor of a surgical or conservative method of treatment also depends on the situation. If large urethral stones or extensive polyp damage are to blame for the occurrence of pain during urination, then surgical intervention will be one of the most likely methods of treatment and the most effective in this case.

In all other situations, it is quite possible to get by with therapeutic algorithms of influence on the cause of the disease. In most situations, regardless of the cause of the disease, attention is certainly paid to the selection of the right diet, excluding all irritating foods, such as fried foods, smoked foods, spicy and fatty, salty and sour ingredients. All of the above should be completely excluded from the diet for the entire period of treatment and adhere to the chosen diet for some time after complete recovery, returning to the usual diet gradually.

The selection of medications also directly depends on the diagnosis, and it is quite difficult to make an assumption about which drug will be preferred.

Prevention of pain when urinating

To avoid most problems with the genitourinary system, you should pay more attention to your lifestyle. Frequent sitting in a motionless position can lead to the formation of stagnant processes in the pelvic area. In this regard, favorable conditions are created for the development of inflammatory processes.

A diet with minimal salt content and maximum vitamin richness, including vegetable and fruit dishes is a great way to keep your body in excellent condition. Drinking plenty of clean drinking water protects the urinary system from stone formation and removes all harmful substances from the entire body. An active lifestyle increases metabolic activity, which also helps to protect against the development of situations in which the main problem will be pain when urinating.