The urethra is an elastic urethra through which urinary fluid is excreted from the body. The urethra in women is shorter than the male and has a length of about 8 cm. For this reason, women are more susceptible to inflammatory processes than men. The main disease of the urinary system is urethritis. Why does the urinary canal hurt in women?
What is urethritis?
Urethritis is an inflammation of the urethra resulting from damage to the mucous membrane by viral infections and pathogenic microorganisms. This disease is very common among the fair sex. It does not belong to the category of diseases that threaten the life of the patient, but can provoke inflammation of other organs of the genitourinary system. So why does the urethra hurt in women?
Causes of disease development
The main causes of urethritis can be divided into two groups: infectious and non-infectious.
Inflammatory process of an infectious nature usually occurs as a result of infection with STDs. In this casethe causes of the disease are:
- Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted disease. Its causative agent is chlamydia, which has signs of both bacteria and viruses. It is difficult to diagnose at the initial stage of infection, since it has an incubation period of about 1.5 months. First of all, it affects the mucous membranes of the urethra, reproductive system and rectum, provoking an inflammatory process.
- Ureaplasmosis is a disease that is transmitted by sexual contact with a carrier. Under favorable conditions, it does not cause much harm to the body, but when concomitant factors occur, it passes into the stage of activation and reproduction.
- Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease that provokes inflammation of the urinary tract and reproductive system. The inflammatory process occurs as a result of damage to the body by gonococci. It affects mainly individual organs covered with epithelium of certain types: cylindrical and glandular. According to statistics, gonorrhea infection occurs from a man to a woman in 50-80% of cases and from a woman to a man in 30-40% of cases.
- Trichomoniasis is a disease that ranks first among sexually transmitted diseases, and a leader among pathogens of the genitourinary system. The incubation period is from 7 to 30 days.
- Mycoplasmosis is a disease resulting from the reproduction of mycoplasmas and their damage to the mucous membranes of the genitourinary system. In the human body, several types of mycoplasmas can multiply at once. The disease is transmitted by traditional sexual contact. Oral sex does not cause mycoplasma infection.
In some cases, the urethra hurts in women as a result of the active reproduction of microorganisms (fungi, E. coli, staphylococci, etc.).
Concomitant factors in the development of the disease include hypothermia, weakened immunity, lack of vitamins, viral diseases, etc.
Non-infectious causes of urethritis are:
- injuries resulting from medical examinations and the introduction of foreign objects;
- drug-induced allergic reactions;
- use of inappropriate intimate hygiene products for microflora;
- impaired circulation of the pelvic organs, arising from a sedentary lifestyle or during pregnancy;
- burn of the mucous membrane of the urethra caused by attempts to self-treat gynecological and other diseases by introducing drugs diluted in the wrong proportions into the vagina;
- unlimited consumption of spicy foods that irritate the lining of the bladder and urethra, drinking alcohol and fatty food.
How does the urinary canal hurt in women? Main Symptoms
Urethritis is an insidious disease that does not appear immediately. Sometimes a woman may not know about the inflammatory process until it moves into an acute form. In order to determine the disease in time, you need to know how the urethra hurts in women.
Signs of inflammation of the urinary canal most oftenappear as follows:
- frequent or false urge to urinate;
- when urinating in women, the urethra or bladder hurts, the pain can radiate to the clitoris;
- purulent and bloody discharge with an unpleasant odor;
- redness of the internal and external genitalia;
- irritation and inflammation of the urinary tract.
In severe cases, the temperature may rise. Urine becomes cloudy. Women's urethra hurts when pressed.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis of inflammation in the urethra is carried out by a full-time examination of a gynecologist. In most cases, the doctor may prescribe additional examinations, such as ultrasound, urine and blood tests, bacteriological culture of urine (to determine sensitivity to antibiotics). These procedures are necessary in order to determine the cause of pain in the urinary canal. The gynecologist may take a swab from the vagina to determine the causative agent of the disease. According to the results of the collected tests, the specialist prescribes the necessary treatment. He will also advise on the main issue of why the urethra hurts in women.
Compliance with the doctor's recommendations is essential to prevent relapse. After completing the course of treatment, it is necessary to undergo a second urine test. Based on the analysis, the doctor will be able to judge the results of therapy and give further recommendations.
Pain in the urethra after childbirth
It is not uncommon for a woman to have pain in her urethra afterchildbirth. What is it connected with? During childbirth, abrasions form on the walls of the urethra. Contact with urine on injured areas can cause irritation and, as a result, an inflammatory process. In this case, it is necessary to consult a doctor who can choose the right therapy. Another cause of painful urination can be a sedentary lifestyle during pregnancy. Stagnation of blood in the pelvic organs can lead to disruption of the genitourinary system.
To avoid this problem, women during pregnancy are recommended to take frequent walks and special exercises.
Chronic urethritis in women
An undiagnosed disease in time, as well as non-compliance with the recommendations of doctors, can lead to a chronic course of the disease. And this, in turn, requires a long and complex treatment. What to do if the urinary canal in women regularly hurts? How to treat the disease if it has become chronic? In this case, specialists prescribe medications of the following groups: antibiotics, immunomodulators, antiseptics, vitamins, etc. In some cases, physiotherapy procedures may be prescribed.
As a rule, chronic urethritis goes through several stages. The first stage is characterized by periodic exacerbations. They appear infrequently and pass quickly. In the second stage, the drugs help less and less, but the pain becomes more severe. In women, the urethra hurts after urination more and more. In this case, only potent drugs help. In the third stage, medicationtreatment does not bring results: antibiotics do not help, but, on the contrary, cause inflammation. Pain becomes a constant companion. In this case, you must immediately contact a specialist and undergo the necessary examinations. Since chronic urethritis is difficult to treat, there is a risk of recurrence. Therefore, it is very important to follow all the doctor's recommendations in a timely and accurate manner.
Treatment of pain in the urethra in women
After passing the necessary tests and identifying the cause of the inflammatory process in the bladder, the doctor prescribes the necessary treatment. It usually includes taking medications and following a diet. Since, for various reasons, the urethra in women can hurt, treatment should be comprehensive and individual for each patient. According to the results of the analysis for the microflora and urine culture, the specialist identifies the causative agents of the disease and the group of antibiotics to which the body is sensitive. The inclusion of antibiotics in therapy is necessary to eliminate foci of infection and relieve the inflammatory process.
To restore the natural microflora in the vagina and boost immunity, a specialist can prescribe immunomodulators, oral probiotics or vaginal suppositories. This is necessary to maintain the natural balance of beneficial bacteria after long-term use of antibiotics. If the pain is intense, the doctor prescribes painkillers and antispasmodics.
In addition to drug therapy, it is recommended to adjust your lifestyle for the period of treatment. If you have a sexual partner, experts advise you to give up intimacy for a period of about two weeks. You need to follow some rules regarding nutrition. First of all, it is necessary to give up alcoholic beverages (when excreted from the body, they irritate the mucous membrane of the urinary canal and are not compatible with drugs), exclude the use of spicy and s alty foods, minimize the use of foods high in sugar, and also refrain from taking smoked, fried and canned foods.
Decoctions of chamomile, mint, coltsfoot, horsetail and goldenrod herb can be a good help for pain in the urinary canal. Treatment with herbal decoctions is not an alternative to taking medications, but in complex therapy they can significantly reduce the inflammatory process.
Preventive measures
Inflammatory process of the urinary canal often has a recurrent character. Therefore, the tactics of treating a patient is aimed not only at eliminating the acute phase of the disease, but also at preventing the disease. First of all, the patient needs to change the diet. As mentioned above, it is necessary to exclude products that provoke irritation of the walls of the bladder. Insufficient fluid intake can also be one of the provoking factors. Rare consumption of pure non-carbonated water can lead to an increased concentration of urine, which increases its irritating effect on the mucous membrane of the urinary system. The occurrence of the disease canpromote the wearing of tight underwear and tight jeans. In this case, air circulation is disturbed, which leads to an imbalance of microflora and promotes the growth of bacteria.
An important point in the prevention of diseases of the genitourinary system is the observance of intimate hygiene. The toilet of external genitals has to be regular and careful. Douching procedures should be carried out only on the recommendation of a doctor, otherwise a woman risks injuring the walls of the vagina and disturbing the microflora.
Possible Complications
The chronic course of the disease is not the only complication that can cause untimely and incorrect treatment. In some cases, an infection from the urethra can spread to nearby organs. The main complications of urethritis include:
- Complete retention of urine. In some cases, the bladder may rupture.
- Peritonitis is an inflammation of the abdominal cavity that occurs as a result of pathogenic microorganisms (E. coli, staphylococcus, pneumococcus, etc.) entering the peritoneum. It is manifested by sharp pains and tension of the abdominal muscles. Vomiting brings no relief.
- The occurrence of an abscess in the genitourinary system. Treated surgically. Characterized by elevated temperature.
- Pyelonephritis is a serious inflammatory disease of the kidneys. Occurs as a result of infection in the renal system. In acute development, it can be a serious threat to life. Requires urgent treatment. In other cases, hospitalization. Hanging temperature - the main alarmingsymptom.
With the right approach to treatment, such complications can be avoided. To do this, you must follow all the necessary instructions from the urologist and follow preventive measures.
Urologist's Basic Tips
In many cases, the disease is easier to prevent than to cure. Here are some recommendations from experts that will help prevent the occurrence of an inflammatory process in the urinary canal:
- Avoid hypothermia. Long stay in the cold can be one of the predisposing factors in the occurrence of urethritis.
- Regular exercise will help strengthen the immune system and avoid blood stasis in the pelvic organs.
- With frequent changes of sexual partners, it is necessary to regularly take tests for the presence of sexual infections. As a result of their occurrence, you need to undergo the recommended course of treatment.
- Observe the rules of intimate hygiene and exclude tight, constricting underwear from your wardrobe.
- Reduce alcohol and spicy foods.
And, of course, at the first manifestations of the inflammatory process, it is necessary to urgently consult a specialist.
