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Cystitis is an inflammation of the bladder often associated with a bacterial infection of the urinary tract, caused not only by bacteria present in the urinary tract but also by a combination of triggering factors. Cystitis mainly affects women of reproductive age. The most common symptom of Cystitis is the frequent and painful need to urinate. The condition can be acute or chronic. Symptoms of cystitis vary because there is not just one type of Cystitis, but several kinds depending on the underlying causes.
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- Incidence of Cystitis
- Symptoms of Cystitis
- Causes of Cystitis
- Chronic Cystitis development
- What if it's not Cystitis?
- Therapy and treatment plans
Incidence
Who does Cystitis affect?
Cystitis is an extremely common urinary infection. It is the second most frequent infectious disease after respiratory infections (colds, flu, and bronchitis). Cystitis affects adults, children, and the elderly, with a total of 2 million diagnoses each year. About 30% of women and 12% of men experience a urinary tract infection at least once in their lifetime, and among these, half suffer from recurrent infections.
During reproductive age, women are the most affected. However, in early childhood and old age, there are no significant epidemiological differences between the sexes. In fact, the immaturity of the urinary tract in children and the increased incidence of prostate conditions in the elderly make the likelihood of developing cystitis similar between males and females.
Symptoms
What are the symptoms of Cystitis?
The symptoms of cystitis, often broadly described as "intimate burning," vary from person to person and depending on the type of cystitis. The most common symptoms are:
- Pollakiuria: frequent need to urinate
- Stranguria: pain during urination
- Nocturia: urinating during the night
- Pyuria: cloudy and foul-smelling urine
- Tenesmus: sensation of still having urine in the bladder after urinating
- Chills and feeling cold: caused by increased adrenaline levels
- Hematuria: blood in the urine
- Dysuria: turbulent, intermittent and weak urine flow
- Altered local sensitivity: flank pain, burning sensation when urinating
- Referred pain: pain in the clitoris, external genitalia and anus
- Chronic pain: pain that persists even after the infection has cleared
Causes
What are the causes of Cystitis?
Cystitis can have various causes, not always bacterial in origin. The most common are:
- Infectious causes: The most common cause of cystitis is a urinary tract infection caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi. In this case, it is referred to as bacterial cystitis. If bacteria are present in the urine without accompanying symptoms, this is called asymptomatic bacteriuria (not true cystitis).
- Inflammatory causes: When bacteria are absent, it is called abacterial cystitis (or sterile urine cystitis), which is inflammation of the bladder caused by irritants to the urinary tract such as excessive urine acidity, irritating foods or drinks, oxalates and crystals in the urine that damage the walls of the bladder and urethra, interstitial cystitis, and more.
- Sexual intercourse: Due to friction during intercourse, microlesions can form on the vaginal tissue, creating a fertile ground for bacteria—often of fecal origin. Within 24 to 72 hours, these bacqteria invade the nearby urethra and ascend to the bladder, causing post-coital cystitis (also known as honeymoon cystitis).
In-depth look: Discover which type of Cystitis you have
Chronicity
Why does Cystitis become chronic?
When the first Cystitis occurs, the use of antibiotics can weaken the intestinal and vaginal bacterial flora, making vaginal infections and candidiasis more likely. This often leads to the use of additional antibiotics and antifungals. The resulting imbalance in the bacterial flora increasingly predisposes the person to further Cystitis recurrences, accompanied by progressive pain sensitization (neuropathy), as the inflammation promotes the development of new nerve fibers.
Inflammation also damages the superficial layer of the bladder, exposing the more delicate underlying cells. This causes normally harmless elements—such as acidic foods, oxalate-rich foods, carbonated drinks, alcohol, cold, or pressure from something pressing on the bladder (like a belt or tight underwear elastic)—to become irritants. This fragility of the bladder tissue predisposes to new episodes of Cystitis.
This sets up a self-perpetuating vicious cycle, where Cystitis becomes the consequence of a lost balance.
In-depth look: How to strengthen the bladder
What if it's not Cystitis?
Which conditions can be mistaken for Cystitis?
"False Cystitis" includes all those conditions that are mistakenly classified and treated as Cystitis but do not improve with traditional therapies because the bladder is actually fine and the urine is normal. This group includes vulvodynia, vestibulodynia, pelvic muscle contracture, pelvic neuropathy, pudendal neuralgia, chronic pelvic pain, and lichen sclerosus.
In cases of chronic Cystitis that do not respond to standard treatments, Cistite.info APS recommends consulting knowledgeable doctors who go beyond just treating the infection. Use our free search tool to easily find a professional capable of diagnosing and treating these conditions by choosing from recommended and affiliated practitioners with the association.
Therapy and treatment plans
What are the treatments for Cystitis?
The traditional therapeutic approach for cystitis involves taking antibiotics. However, antibiotics have many side effects: they destroy pathogens but also kill beneficial bacteria, weaken the immune system, can cause neuropathy from fluoroquinolones, promote the onset of Candida infections (since fungi are not affected by antibiotics), and increase antibiotic resistance, making bacteria increasingly difficult to eliminate.
A more effective approach should be reconstructive—restoring lost defenses and targeting risk factors to break the vicious cycle once and for all. Thanks to its twenty years of experience working with patients, Cistite.info APS has developed specific treatment plans for each type of cystitis. These plans can be received immediately and free of charge via email.
Discover how to heal Cystitis permanently with natural remedies
Bibliography
- Rugarli “Medicina interna sistematica”, Elsevier 2010 , pag 917
- Fegiz, Marran, Ruberti “Manuale di Chirurgia Generale” (2 voll.), Piccin 1996, pag 2799
- Infezioni delle vie urinarie”, Prof. Alessandro Bartoloni, Clinica di Malattie Infettive e Tropicali, Università degli Studi di Firenze