Bladder Health Month: Topic #5--Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome

Dr. Payne has spent years advocating for changes in our approach to patients with bladder pain.  The two most important facts are:

1. Interstitial Cystitis and Bladder Pain Syndrome are unrelated conditions. They occur in different patient populations, have different underlying physiologies, different prognoses, and different treatment algorithms.
2. Bladder Pain Syndrome is only a syndrome, not a specific disease. It actually represents a variety of different disorders that all manifest similar symptoms (think about a brain tumors, migraines, and dehydration all causing headaches).  Successful treatment requires defining the phenotype of each patient.

Do you have bladder pain?  Has your doctor carefully interviewed and examined you?  Do you know your pain phenotype?  Do you have a treatment plan tailored to your unique situation?  If not, we can help.