Some Causes and Features of Painful Urination
Some Causes and Features of Painful Urination
Cause | Common Features* | Tests |
|---|---|---|
Infections† | ||
Cystitis Bladder Infection | Usually in women and girls A frequent and urgent need to urinate Getting up at night to urinate Sometimes blood in the urine or foul-smelling urine | A doctor's examination |
Epididymo-orchitis Epididymitis and Epididymo-orchitis (infection of an epididymis and a testis) | Tenderness and swelling in a testis Possibly frequent urination or a discharge from the urethra Sometimes fever or nausea | A doctor's examination Sometimes urinalysis |
Prostatitis Prostatitis (infection of the prostate) | A tender prostate detected during a digital rectal examination Often fever, difficulty starting urination, frequent urination, the need to urinate during the night, and burning or pain during urination Sometimes blood in the urine Often symptoms of a long-standing blockage in the urinary tract (including a weak urine stream, difficulty passing urine, or dribbling at the end of urination) | Urinalysis and urine culture |
Urethritis Urethritis (infection of the urethra), typically due to an STI | Usually a visible discharge from the urethra in men Sometimes a discharge from the vagina in women In people who have recently had unprotected intercourse | STI testing |
Vulvovaginitis Vulvitis (infection of the vulva and vagina) | A discharge from the vagina Often redness in the genital area | A doctor's examination, including examination of a sample of the discharge under a microscope |
Cervicitis Cervicitis (infection of the cervix) | Often a cervical discharge History of unprotected intercourse | STI testing |
Disorders that cause inflammation | ||
Connective tissue disorders that cause inflammation (such as reactive arthritis Reactive Arthritis | General or bodywide symptoms (including body pain and joint pain) that develop before urination becomes painful Sometimes sores on the skin, mouth, eyes, or genital area, including inside the vagina | STI testing Sometimes blood tests to check for these connective tissue disorders |
Contact with a substance that irritates the area or causes an allergic reaction (such as a spermicide, lubricant, or latex condom) | Sometimes redness in the genital area In people who have been exposed to a substance that could cause irritation or an allergic reaction | Only a doctor's examination |
Interstitial cystitis Interstitial Cystitis (inflammation of the bladder without infection) | More common among women A frequent and urgent need to urinate Long-standing symptoms | Urinalysis and urine culture Examination of the interior of the bladder using a flexible viewing tube inserted through the urethra ( cystoscopy Cystoscopy ), usually including removal of a sample of tissue for examination ( biopsy of the bladder Bladder biopsy Site-specific biopsies and cell sampling are also used in the evaluation of people with suspected kidney and urinary tract disorders. (See also Overview of the Urinary Tract.) A kidney biopsy... read more ) |
Other disorders | ||
Atrophic vaginitis or urethritis (thinning of tissues in the vagina or urethra) | In postmenopausal women Vaginal dryness Often pain during intercourse A discharge from the vagina Changes in the interior of the vagina (it becomes smooth and pale) | Only a doctor's examination |
Tumors (usually bladder Bladder Cancer , prostate Prostate Cancer | Long-standing symptoms, such as a weak urine stream or difficulty starting urination Usually blood in the urine Blood in Urine | If bladder cancer is suspected, cystoscopy Cystoscopy If prostate cancer is suspected, a blood test to measure PSA levels |
* Features include symptoms and the results of the doctor's examination. Features mentioned are typical but not always present. | ||
† Infectious organisms that commonly cause painful urination include sexually transmitted organisms Overview of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) | ||
‡ This cause is rare. | ||
PSA = prostate-specific antigen; STI = sexually transmitted infection. | ||
