Urethritis is an inflammation of the urethra (urethra). This is a very common urological disease. Urethritis affects approximately equally often both men and women.
There are two large groups of urethritis – infectious and non-infectious.
Infectious urethritis is caused by various pathogens. Urethritis is divided into specific (gonococci, gardnerella) and nonspecific (staphylococcus aureus, E. coli, streptococcus).
Non-infectious urethritis can develop as a result of an injury to the urethra, which is likely with cystoscopy, bladder catheterization, and the passage of a stone. Other causes may be an allergic reaction, narrowing of the urethra, congestion in the pelvic area. As a rule, with the development of non-infectious urethritis in the urethra, conditionally pathogenic microorganisms (primarily staphylococci) are activated, and non-infectious urethritis quickly turns into secondary non-specific bacterial.
Who is sick and how they become infected with urethritis
Absolutely anyone can get sick with urethritis. Infection occurs most often during sexual contact with the patient. It should be noted here that urethritis can occur without pronounced manifestations, imperceptibly, and the patient himself may not know that he is sick. However, this does not mean that all his sexual partners will endure the disease as easily – the course of the disease depends on the state of the body and on a number of other factors. You should also know that the symptoms of the disease will not appear immediately after intercourse, but after some time (for nonspecific bacterial urethritis – from several hours to several months), which is called the incubation period.
The main manifestations of urethritis are burning, pain or pain during urination, especially at its beginning, and discharge from the urethra. Allocations are traditionally in the morning. With a nonspecific bacterial infection, they are abundant, mucopurulent, blue-green in color, with an unpleasant odor.
It should be noted that men, due to anatomical features (longer and narrower urethra), earlier and more acutely feel the onset of symptoms of urethritis. In women, the symptoms of urethritis are less pronounced and may generally go unnoticed.
Men may notice sticking in the morning of the sponges of the external opening of the urethra and their redness. Urethritis can occur without discharge from the urethra, only with discomfort during urination. In addition, as mentioned above, the manifestations of urethritis can be so insignificant that patients do not attach importance to them. However, this does not mean that the disease does not need to be treated, that it “will pass by itself.” With urethritis, as a rule, there are no general inflammatory symptoms – there is no increase in body temperature, weakness.
If a sick person with acute urethritis decided not to pay attention to the discharge, to “tolerate” discomfort during urination and not to disturb the doctor “for such trifles”, then after a while – lo and behold! – all symptoms disappear by themselves. What happens, you can not go to the doctor, not spend money on medicines? Not really. Just the body managed to suppress the inflammation. But never in such cases the body can not get rid of all pathogens. They will be few, but they will remain. They are “saved” in men – in the prostate gland and seminal vesicles, in women – in the Bartholin glands, in the small glands of the vestibule. The causative agent will “wait” for the first episode of hypothermia, excessive alcohol consumption, violent sex life, and then it will again cause inflammation of the urethra, but most likely it will not be limited to them,
What does a urologist do when a patient with urethritis turns to him
When contacting a urologist, it is enough to conduct one study to confirm the diagnosis. This is the collection and sowing of discharge from the urethra (and in their absence, the first portion of urine from a three-glass sample). In the laboratory, the causative agent of the disease is determined, as well as its susceptibility to various groups of antibacterial products, which makes it possible to make a final diagnosis and prescribe adequate treatment. In addition, the doctor conducts a series of studies to exclude the involvement of other organs in the inflammatory process (in men – primarily the prostate gland and seminal vesicles, in women – the bladder).
The main treatment for urethritis is antibiotic therapy. There are many different products, and for each patient, the urologist chooses the most effective (and affordable), primarily based on laboratory data. The general course of treatment can last from several days to several weeks and depends on the severity of the disease and its stage. Treatment is carried out, as a rule, at home, patients with urethritis are not often hospitalized, as a rule, with the development of severe purulent complications.