UroToday - Interstitial cystitis (IC) is not "one disease." It is a sum of many different symptoms, and every patient needs to be treated as unique. Success can be achieved only if there is good collaboration between the patient, who needs to make lifestyle changes, the physicians and physical therapists.

What IC patients have in common is varying degrees of voiding dysfunction. They are miserable, and often no one has acknowledged that they have a real problem.

The International Society for the Study of Vulvovaginal Disease (ISSVD) defines Vulvodynia as chronic vulvar discomfort or pain, characterized by burning, stinging, irritation or rawness of the female genitalia in cases in which there is no infection or skin disease of the vulva or vagina causing these symptoms. Burning sensations are the most common, but the type and severity of symptoms are highly individualized. Pain may be constant or intermittent, localized or diffuse.

Vulvodynia, as with most chronic pain conditions, can have a profound impact on a woman's quality of life. It typically affects her ability to engage in sexual activity and may interfere with daily functioning, e.g., sitting at a desk, engaging in physical exercise, and participating in social activities. These limitations can negatively affect self-image and lead to depression.
This paper contributes to examining interrelation and coexistence between these two conditions, vulvodyinia and IC.

Daniele Porru, MD as part of Beyond the Abstract on UroToday. This initiative offers a method of publishing for the professional urology community. Authors are given an opportunity to expand on the circumstances, limitations, etc., of their research by referencing the published abstract.

Link to full abstract

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