21 September 2019

What Is Cystitis? (Bladder Irritation)



The urinary system of the human body consists of kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra where all the parts play a major role in removing waste from the body. The kidneys filter waste from blood while ureters carry urine from kidney to bladder. Then urine will exit body from urethra. Cystitis is an inflammation in the urinary bladder where it gets swollen, hot, reddened and most of the time painful. The inflammation is usually caused by a bacterial infection or an injury. Cystitis is another type of urinary tract infection (UTI) which is painful and annoying, and it will cause serious health conditions if spread to kidney. Typically, UTIs will be occurred when bacteria outside the body enters the urinary tract through the urethra and starts spreading. The most common bacteria is Escherichia coli (E. coli). Also, bladder irritations can be caused by sexual intercourse. Cystitis can be caused due to noninfectious factors too. Examples of noninfectious cystitis are interstitial, drug induced, radiation, foreign body and chemical cystitis.

When a person suffers from a bladder irritation, he/she will get symptoms such as frequent urge to urinate, urge to urinate after emptying the bladder, burning sensation after and while urination and urinating in small amounts frequently. Also, sometimes there can be blood in the urine. There will be a pelvic discomfort due to sensations of pressure occurred as a result of bladder fullness. In addition, the patient will suffer during sexual intercourse. If the infections multiples to the kidneys, serious issues like nausea, vomiting, back or side pain and chills will be caused. A person should seek immediate medical help If those symptoms occur.

Most of the time women are at a higher risk of getting cystitis because they have a shorter urethra. The women who are sexually active, pregnant, have experienced menopause and using irritating personal hygiene products are at a greater risk of getting cystitis. However, men and women both are at a risk of this condition in different ways. There are several risk factors that are common to both men and women. They are radiation therapy, chemotherapy, the use of a catheter, diabetes, kidney stones, HIV, spinal injury, etc.

Cystitis can be treated in many ways. Normally the interstitial cystitis is treated with medications like antibiotics. For a first-time infection, taking antibiotics for about 3 days is recommended. If the person is having a repeat infection the doctor will recommend a longer antibiotic treatment and maybe directed for a urologist. Hospital acquired infections are resistant to antibiotics and different approaches will be used to treat them. Cystitis symptoms are annoying and there are several home remedies that helps to ease the discomfort. To minimize the bladder pain, placing a heating pad on the lower abdomen will be effective. One of the best home remedies for cystitis is to drink plenty of clean water and keeping yourself hydrated. Beverages like coffee, alcohol, soft drinks and citrus juices must be avoided. To relieve pain a person can soak in a bathtub of warm water for about 15 to 20 minutes. If a person is having minor symptoms of Cystitis, make an appointment with the family doctor and take necessary actions to treat the condition. 




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