How do you get diagnose for interstitial. cystitis?
Posted , 4 users are following.
i have all the symptoms of the above constant burning, lower abdominal and back pain recently It is either atrophic vaginitis, vulvodynia or ic. Gp wants to treat me for atrophic vaginitis. My symptoms point to ic but I do not have any urgency or
frequency I do go to the toilet at least three times at night because I drink a lot and I urinate normally not drops. I had a cystoscopy last year and urologist reported everything normal does this mean I not have ic? I am really fed up but the symptoms are manageable.
0 likes, 7 replies
sandy43858 marie13049
Posted
Hi what are your symptoms? I've been experiencing a burn like feeling. It's in the background. Sometimes I'm OK then some days the burn increases. It also gets worse when I eat or drink acidic foods. I've had a few tests done that come back negative. Have they tests your urine... Are there any puss cells? Mine come back as 0-50. Not sure what that means. I also drink a lot of water so go to the toilet often. But I also urinate... Not drops. I've been told that it's unlikely that I have IC but all my symptoms show me that it could be. How long has the burn been there?
marie13049 sandy43858
Posted
The main symptoms are burning and lower abdominal discomfort and recently backache. I feel something is pressing on my bladder and feel I have got urine infection. Dipsticks at surgery always show leucocytes and path lab fesults are neg.
sandy43858 marie13049
Posted
This is the same as me. Have you asked for a copy of your lab results? Ask for a copy and check to see what levels of puss cells are present. I also have white blood cells in urine on diptick but lab results come back negative.
marie13049 sandy43858
Posted
What usually happened I am usually prescribed antibiotics on the results of the dipsticks but I do not take them until I get results from path lab. Although I feel I have a urine infection but I know it us unlikely, my urine is clear and I do not suffer from urgency and can hold my urine. It does not sting when I pass urine. with IC I understand the pain can be unbearable mine is manageable Have not had to resort to painkillers yet. Need to discuss with gp again whether symptoms are due to atrophic vaginitis, vulvodynia or IC. I think unlikely to be IC or vulvodynia . I have had a lots of tests but nothing sinister was found. It seems will need to put up with it. I have declined using ovestin as GP wants to treat it as atrophic vaginitis
sandy43858 marie13049
Posted
Hi Marie I have the exact problem. I get a burn like feeling I leave it for a day if it gets worse I go gp. GP does diptick it shows white blood cells. They send urine off it comes back neg. Then I started to request a copy of the lab results. Have you asked for this? The lab results shows 0-50 puss cells. This isn't classed as an infection but I also don't think it's normal. Because it's not meeting the threshold of a UTI the GP tells me it's negative. So it could possibly be underlining bacteria. I'm going to my urologist next week to show them the results. You should request yours. The GP might be saying no UTI but you might have a high number of puss cells showing.
shirley_an59859 marie13049
Posted
Hi Marie. I'm sorry you're having to deal with these distressing symptoms. I Think your GP is doing the right thing for treating you first for atrophic vaginitis - it is the most likely cause for your symptoms and you will probably be given HRT in the form of Vagifem pessaries. If these help, then you'll have more of a clue! The lining of the bladder is estrogen receptive just like the uterus and vaginal tissue, so often urinary symptoms accompany atrophic vaginitis. The only way to diagnose IC is by cystoscopy and the discovery of hunner's ulcers. Not everyone who has IC will have these horrible ulcers though and it then becomes a diagnosis of exclusion, which it seems is what your GP's doing. Self help measures include following the IC diet (mainly avoiding caffeine, citrus fruits, and too much alcohol) and never using anything but plain water when cleaning that area. I hope the treatment you're being given brings relief - it may take a few weeks/months for any estrogen to repair inflammed tissues, but hopefully this is the problem rather than the rarer condition of IC as it will be easier to manage! A Sympathetic doctor goes a long way to help - hope you've got one!
Amanda86048 marie13049
Posted
Symptoms of IC can vary but generally involve bladder symptoms (urgency, frequency, burning, pain, etc). It's still possible that it's IC but I would pursue a vaginal/pelvic disorder. Have you been evaluated for pelvic floor disorder?pelvic pt can really help.