ABSTRACT
Bladder pain syndrome/interstitial cystitis (BPS/IC) is a chronic clinical syndrome of unknown cause and no generally accepted treatment. The diagnosis of BPS/IC is established based on the presence of urinary frequency, nocturia, pain referable to the bladder, and characteristic (nonspecific) cystoscopic signs in the absence of objective evidence of other diseases that could cause these symptoms. Symptoms associated with idiopathic BPS/IC often appear acutely, and generally progress rapidly to a final severity with little worsening thereafter. Additionally, symptoms often wax and wane, being exacerbated by stress. BPS/IC patients also may be at increased risk for a wide variety of other unexplained clinical conditions, including irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, panic disorder (1). Patients with BPS/IC also were much more likely than controls to have had prior pelvic surgery (44.1% vs. 17.5%) (2). Unfortunately, many of the bladder abnormalities identified in patients with IC are not specific for this disease; they have been reported in patients with other bladder diseases. And although there is no generally effective treatment, a spontaneous remission rate of up to 50% has been reported (3).
