Differential Diagnosis for Painful Urination
- Single Most Likely Diagnosis
- Urinary Tract Infection (UTI): This is the most common cause of painful urination, especially in women. The symptoms of UTI include dysuria (painful urination), frequent urination, and urgency to urinate.
- Other Likely Diagnoses
- Kidney Stones: Small stones in the urinary tract can cause severe pain, especially when they move from the kidney to the bladder. The pain is often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and frequent urination.
- Prostatitis: Inflammation of the prostate gland can cause painful urination, especially in men. Other symptoms include pelvic pain, frequent urination, and discharge.
- Urethritis: Inflammation of the urethra can cause painful urination, especially in men. Other symptoms include discharge and itching.
- Interstitial Cystitis: A chronic condition that causes bladder pressure, bladder pain, and sometimes pelvic pain. The symptoms can worsen as the bladder fills and may improve with urination.
- Do Not Miss Diagnoses
- Gonorrhea or Chlamydia: Sexually transmitted infections that can cause painful urination, especially in young adults. If left untreated, these infections can lead to serious complications such as infertility and pelvic inflammatory disease.
- Tuberculosis of the Urinary Tract: A rare but serious infection that can cause painful urination, frequent urination, and hematuria (blood in the urine).
- Cancer of the Urinary Tract: Although rare, cancer of the urinary tract can cause painful urination, hematuria, and other symptoms such as weight loss and fatigue.
- Rare Diagnoses
- Sickle Cell Disease: A genetic disorder that can cause sickling of red blood cells in the urinary tract, leading to painful urination and other symptoms such as hematuria.
- Cystitis due to Radiation: Radiation therapy to the pelvic area can cause inflammation of the bladder, leading to painful urination and other symptoms such as frequency and urgency.
- Eosinophilic Cystitis: A rare condition characterized by an eosinophilic infiltration of the bladder wall, causing painful urination, frequency, and urgency.