Interstitial Cystitis (IC), or Painful Bladder Syndrome, can be difficult to diagnose, and it can go a long time undiagnosed. For many, it feels like a bladder infection that won't go away. It might even start out as an infection, which is what I believe caused my IC.
How do you get an interstitial cystitis diagnosis?
The key to diagnosing this painful condition is ruling out all other problems, such as bladder infections, stones, and cancer.
1. Urine culture
When the urine test at the clinic
comes back negative for a bladder infection, your doctor might perform a pelvic
exam or send your urine in to be cultured. A culture can determine whether
there are bacteria in your urine, and what type. If that also comes back clear,
you will need to go through further examination and testing to determine
whether you have interstitial cystitis or another problem.
2. Ultrasound
The next step in diagnosing IC might
be to get a pelvic ultrasound to make sure all your organs in this area look
normal. For this, you will need to make sure your bladder is full, which can be
uncomfortable. If you have given birth, for example, something might have
gotten kinked, damaged, or moved out of place.
3. Cystoscopy
A cystoscopy involves inserting a
tiny scope into the bladder to look for abnormalities, such as cysts. People
with interstitial cystitis might have tiny cysts inside the bladder, which can
cause the pain you are feeling. This is a very uncomfortable procedure, but it
can take as little time as five minutes.
4. Intravenous pyelogram
Your urologist might also want to check
your kidneys to make sure they are not causing your urinary problems. During an
intravenous pyelogram, a contrast solution will be injected into your veins.
This will make it easier to see your kidneys on an x-ray.
5. Potassium sensitivity test
I never had a potassium sensitivity
test to determine an interstitial cystitis diagnosis, but I have learned that
it involves running water and potassium (separately) into the bladder and
testing for sensitivity to the potassium. A normal bladder has a healthy lining
that protects against irritation, but this lining in an IC bladder might be too
damaged to do so.
These are a few tests that you might
experience as your doctor tries to rule out all other possibilities and give
you a painful bladder syndrome, or interstitial cystitis, diagnosis.
**Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only, and is not
intended to be used in place of professional medical advice. If you have any
symptoms of IC, please consult with your doctor.
References:
Note: This article was previously published at Yahoo! Voices and the rights reverted back to the author when the site closed.
