A chronic bladder problem involving a bladder wall that is inflamed and irritated. Symptoms include an urgent need to urinate, both daytime and nighttime; pressure, pain and tenderness around the bladder, pelvis and perineum (the area between the anus and vagina or the anus and scrotum) which may increase as the bladder fills and decrease as it empties during urination; a bladder that won't hold as much urine as it did before; pain during sexual intercourse; in men, discomfort or pain in the penis or scrotum. In many women, the symptoms get worse before their menstrual period. Stress may also make the symptoms worse, but it does not cause them.

	Heparin As A Treatment "...Some conditions that appear to be sensitive to heparin include ... Interstitial cystitis (Effective in a human experimental model of interstitial cystitis)..." Increased Urinary Frequency The Condition "...Causes & Development Common causes of frequent urination include ... Interstitial cystitis..." Interstitial Cystitis The Condition "Interstitial Cystitis (IC) refers to an uncomfortable and annoying inflammatory condition of the bladder..." Our Question about vulvar pain "Vestibulitis may sometimes be part of bladder and/or urethral inflammation as seen in the interstitial cystitis or urethral syndrome..." Recommendation Tobacco Avoidance "In people who have already been diagnosed with interstitial cystitis, symptoms may be less likely to flare up if the patient stops smoking cigarettes..." Recommendation MSM (Methyl Sulfonyl Methane) "...Childs, MD, of the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, recently described 6 patients with interstitial cystitis who benefited from MSM..." Recommendation DMSO Topically "A common and useful treatment for interstitial cystitis is the instillation of DMSO into the bladder..." Recommendation Alkalizing Agents/Diet "A book written by a urologist, Larrian Guillespie, MD called You Don't Have to Live With Cystitis (1985) details a fundamentally dietary approach to interstitial cystitis..." Strangury Related Topic "Painful, sporadic and drop-by-drop urination, caused by the presence of kidney stones, chronic inflammation such as interstitial cystitis, or urethral scar tissue..." Urethritis / Urethral Syndrome The Condition "...Other disease processes which must be excluded are: Chlamydia infections, Ureaplasma infections, neurological disorders, gynecological disorders, bladder tumors, urethral narrowing, interstitial cystitis and more..." Vulvodynia / Vestibulitis Relationship to Urethritis / Urethral Syndrome "Vestibulitis may sometimes be part of bladder and/or urethral inflammation as seen in the interstitial cystitis or urethral syndrome..."

Last updated: Apr 07, 2008