Extreme burning of urethra for 23 years..please help

[cooley80]

please help...i have suffered with intense burning of the urethra since i was about 5/6 years of age. I remember being in crippling pain at primary school .Along with the pain is frequent urinating of tiny amounts.The symptoms can last anywhere between half an hour to a week. Ive been to the doctors who reffered me to a urology department a few years ago and they tested me for infections , proteins, etc and every thing came back clear. I had a camera inserted in my urethra into my bladder and again they said everything was fine.I was in such pain during that procedure that i couldnt walk or move.The doctor thinks that I have a ultra sensitive urethra which is causing the burning. They gave me Buscopan 10mg tabs and Trimethroprin 100mg but these dont help. As well as  these tablets I have tried cranberry juice, natural yogurt, water, painkillers and now I dont know what else to try. Also the burning  occurs after I have urinated NOT during urination, then gets worse every time i urinate after that.I manage to numb the pain by sitting on a hard surface i.e corner of a chair or on the heal of my foot. This makes normal day to day activity's hard to deal with, especially trying to hold down a job. No one understands or sympathises as no one can relate.Symptons come sudden and without warning .I hope someone, somewhere can help me find a name for this condition aswell as treatment. Many thanks.

[cooley80]

Thankyou to everyone who offered me advise.Ive been back to my doctor who thinks my urine needs testing for infections again.I will mention the advise given to me on this site and hopefully find something that works. Many thanks again.

[David A Burks, MD]

Hi, You probably don't have IC.  To meet the definition of IC you have to have frequency and urgency along with the pain.  Since you didn't mention these symptoms then you have what we call "urethral syndrome".  Its a syndrome where women get pain during or after voiding in the urethral with a negative work up.  This is the first I've heard of anyone getting it at age 6yrs.  Unfortunately there is no standard treatment for the problem.  You do need an X-ray of the urethra called a voiding cystourethrogram.  This will confirm that the urethra opens as it should during voiding, and there is no obstruction to flow (very rare in women).  It also would look for a urethral diverticulum, an outpouching of the urethral lining into the sall of the vagina that can cause burning. A nerve block into the urethra using a local anesthetic would be diagnostic and may also lessen the pain. You clearly need to see a Urologist who specializes in female urology to help you with this problem.  This is not IC, but I would still do the diet modification recommended in the letter above.  Good Luck

[hotrodgirl]

I have IC and it is painful.  I'm lucky in the fact that I only have a mild case. I just went for my 6 month check up.  I had noticed that in the mornings I wasn't urinating much.  And sometimes I would even have to learn forward and strain to urinate.  My uro did another Dilation on urinary tract and drained my bladder.  He drained about 8-10 oz and I had just gone to the restroom right before the procedure.

I'm not a dr and can't advise if you have IC or not.  But, if it is IC, you should be following the IC Diet.  This is extremely helpful.  You can visit the IC forum and get tons of information along with the info on the diet.  I'll try to post it here, but if it gets removed, just pm me and I'll give it to you... wwwdotic-networkdotcom

If you do have IC, then stop drinking fruit juices immediately.  Cranberry juice and IC DO NOT mix well !!

Best of luck to you.

[daughmic]

Have you tried prednisone? The tissues of the uretra are obviously inflamed. Prednisone worked for me.

[Maz21]

Hello. I sympathise Greatly. I'm 21 and have pain in my kidneys constantly and it's always sore after I pee. Theyre not sure what I have yet but I have had days also of severe burning sensations in my urethra non stop. Have you tried sitting on a hot water bottle? Obviouly this cant be done at work but may help to relax at home? This is the only thing along with pain killers that eased it a little for me. I know you mentioned water that for me is helpful too. It makes it less stingy. Also cystocalm sachets from the chemist, not great but I guess every little helps.