What are the symptoms of cystitis?

Burning sensations or pain during urination.

Frequent urination.

Cloudy and foul-smelling urine.

Pain directly above the pubic bone.

Children under five years of age often have less concrete symptoms, such as weakness, irritability, reduced appetite and vomiting.

Older women may also have no symptoms other than weakness, falls, confusion or fever.

Who is at special risk?

Women or girls who do not practice proper toilet hygiene.

Pregnant women.

People with a congenital deformity in the urinary system.

Men with an enlarged prostate.

People using a catheter.

Good advice

It is important to drink sufficiently, so the bladder is flushed thoroughly.

During urination the bladder should be emptied completely. It is a bad habit to sit on the toilet bent forward and reading while urinating.

A trick is to place yourself backwards on the toilet, so you lean against the wall. This posture is more suitable in securing a complete emptying of the bladder than the usual sitting posture.

Warm clothes on the lower part of the body will also help prevent cystitis.

As a prevention, it may be helpful to drink cranberry juice every day or take capsules. There is no doubt that this simple and natural treatment brings relief to many women with cystitis. It is thought that the cranberry juice works by preventing common bacteria from ‘sticking’ to the walls of the bladder and so preventing infection taking hold.

Urination immediately after sexual intercourse will flush out most bacteria from the urethra.

Try to urinate at least once every three hours. Women who avoid urination for long periods suffer from more infections of the urinary system.

What treatments are available?

There are a number of products available from your pharmacist to treat cystitis. These can be used unless a woman is vomiting or if there is blood in the urine or if a woman is pregnant in which case she should consult her doctor. Usually, a single course of treatment clears up the problem, but if symptoms persist after trying an over-the-counter remedy then you should consult your doctor.

The same goes for a male.