Inflammation of the bladder is a common disease, but due to some characteristics of the body, women face it more often than men. Late diagnostics and improper treatment can lead to unpleasant consequences, so you need to know what are the causes and the first symptoms of bladder inflammation in women.
About the causes and development of
The most common cause of the disease are pathogenic microorganisms - bacteria, protozoa or microscopic fungi. It is much less common to deal with non-infectious inflammation, which is due to allergies, exposure to the mucous membrane of the urinary bladder chemicals or radioactive radiation.
There are a number of predisposing factors that can provoke the inflammatory process:
- non-compliance with hygiene rules;
- the period of menopause;
- physical inactivity;
- trauma to the epithelium;
- violations of urodynamics;
- other diseases of the bladder or nearby organs( presence of neoplasm or calculus in the bladder, chronic endometritis or vaginitis);
- presence of other foci of infection;
- hormonal imbalance;
- reduction of the body's defenses.
Girls and women neglect personal hygiene causes illness more often than boys and men. The urethra in female representatives is much shorter and wider, so the pathogens from the perineum easily penetrate into the bladder ascending way.
With the onset of menopause in the urogenital system of women, anatomical and topographic changes occur. The elasticity of the ligaments, which fix the urino-genital organs, decreases, their omission is observed. Hormonal restructuring causes atrophic processes in the epithelium of the bladder, which makes it especially vulnerable to cystitis pathogens.
Low physical activity and a "sedentary" lifestyle lead to stagnation of blood in the vessels of the pelvis. Deterioration of blood supply of the urino-genital organs is one of the reasons for their dysfunction and the development of inflammatory processes.
Injuries of the bladder mucosa may occur as a result of a fall, some medical manipulation or the presence of a stone. Damage is the entrance gate to infection.
Urodynamic disorders are often caused by cicatrical strictures( constrictions) of the urethra, which were formed against a background of urethritis, neurological disorders or neoplasms.
Incomplete emptying and the constant presence of the urine residue in the urinary bladder leads to active bacterial growth.
Very often inflammation of the neck of the bladder in women develops against the background of infectious gynecological diseases - vulvitis, vaginitis, cervicitis. Thus, the causative agent of these diseases is often the same. Inflammation can cause gonococci, Trichomonas, chlamydia or fungi of the genus Candida. However, most often the cause of inflammation is the E. coli.
Infection can enter the bladder not only by ascending a way, but also with a blood or lymphatic fluid flow.
In this regard, the presence of even distant foci of infection( eg, in the pharyngeal tonsils) increases the risk of developing the disease. Often with this disease, women who have chronic pyelonephritis. Infection in this case spreads downward - from the kidneys to the bladder.
Hormonal pathology, in particular diabetes, leads to an increase in the level of glucose in the urine, which is a good nutrient medium for pathogenic microorganisms.
Unbalanced nutrition, hypothermia, persistent stress and non-observance of the daily regimen lead to a decrease in local and general immunity. In such conditions, inflammation can occur even in the absence of other predisposing factors.
Symptoms of bladder inflammation in women
Symptoms of acute inflammation of the bladder are typical, so diagnosis of the disease usually does not cause complications. But it must be remembered that along with urological problems, women often have gynecological diseases. Symptoms of inflammation of the bladder are as follows:
- frequent urge( up to several times per hour, more than 4 - 7 times a day);
- soreness of the act of urination( pain in the beginning and in the end, which can give into the rectum);
- allocation of a small amount of urine at each hike to the toilet;
- feeling of incomplete emptying;
- clouding of urine, an admixture of blood or pus;
- appearance of a pronounced smell of ammonia;
- appearance of mucous or mucopurulent discharge from the urethra;
- persistent aching pain in the lower abdomen, intensifying with urination;
- increase in body temperature to 37.5 degrees;
- general malaise( weakness, headache, decreased appetite).
In chronic inflammation, symptoms are much weaker. Most often there is chronic pelvic pain - unpleasant sensations in the pelvic or lower abdomen, which are combined with increased irritability, sleep disturbance and decreased efficiency.
To confirm or deny the presence of cystitis, the physician conducts the diagnosis:
- general blood and urine tests;
- urine test for Nechiporenko;
- three-glassed samples;
- bacteriological examination of urine( seeding on a nutrient medium);
- PCR diagnostics;
- gynecological examination and analysis of the vaginal smear;
- ultrasound of pelvic organs;
- cystoscopy.
Based on the results obtained, a course of therapy is prescribed.
Treatment of bladder inflammation: medicines and drugs
When treating acute forms of inflammation of the urinary bladder, women are recommended to comply with bed rest, plenty of drink, refusal to drink alcohol, salt and spices.
It is recommended to drink diuretic teas - decoctions of cowberry, bearberry, goldenrod. To reduce the pain, warm baths or the use of a heating pad help. If the pain syndrome is severe, the doctor may prescribe drugs that relieve spasm.
The main role is given to treatment with antibiotics, helping to destroy the causative agents of infection. Most often in the treatment of inflammation of the urinary bladder, quinolones and fluoroquinolones are used.
However, only experts can prescribe such pills for the treatment of cystitis in women after carrying out diagnostic tests. The choice of drugs is carried out depending on the nature of the pathogen and its sensitivity to various drugs.
In the absence of proper treatment, the spread of pathogens up the ureters, penetration into the kidneys with the development of pyelitis and pyelonephritis can occur. In addition, it is possible to infect the reproductive system, which leads to vulvitis, vaginitis, colpitis and endometritis.
Prevention of cystitis is the elimination of risk factors. It is necessary to observe personal hygiene, avoid hypodynamia, hypothermia, stresses and inaccuracies in the diet. Treatment of the disease should begin immediately, because otherwise the risk of chronicization of the pathological process is high.