Urethr Health Dictionary

Inflammation of the urethra... urethritis

The tube which leads from the URINARY BLADDER to the exterior, and by which the URINE is voided. It is about 20 cm (8 inches) long in the male and 3·5 cm (1••• inches) long in the female. In the male it passes along the PENIS; in the female the urethra opens to the exterior just in front of the VAGINA between the labial folds.... urethra

PROLAPSE of the URETHRA into the wall of the VAGINA. The result is a bulbous swelling in the roof of the vagina which is worse when the woman strains to urinate or defaecate, or during childbirth. The condition is usually the consequence of a previous pregnancy. The condition is treated with surgical repair of the slack tissues to strengthen support for the urethra and vaginal wall.... urethrocele

Examination of the URETHRA using X-RAYS. A radio-opaque ?uid is injected into the bladder and any abnormalities of the urethra can be observed on the X-ray ?lms.... urethrography

Surgical repair of the URETHRA, usually to relieve a stricture (see under URETHRA, DISEASES OF AND INJURY TO).... urethroplasty

An in?ammatory condition of the URETHRA due to a cause or causes other than GONORRHOEA. The most common is CHLAMYDIA trachomatis – there has been a rise of over 75 per cent in the incidence in the UK over the past ?ve years to around 70,000 a year. It produces pelvic in?ammatory disease in women, which often results in sterility, the risk of ECTOPIC PREGNANCY, and recurrent pelvic pain. Most cases respond well to TETRACYCLINES. Abstinence from sexual intercourse should be observed during treatment and until cure is complete. Children born to infected mothers may have their eyes infected during birth, producing the condition known as ophthalmia neonatorum. This is treated by the application to the eye of chlortetracycline eye ointment. The lungs of such a child may also be infected, resulting in pneumonia.... non-specific urethritis (nsu)

Trauma Injury to the urethra is often the result of severe trauma to the pelvis – for example, in a car accident or as the result of a fall. Trauma can also result from catheter insertion (see CATHETERS) or the insertion of foreign bodies into the urethra. The signs are the inability to pass urine, and blood at the exit of the urethra. The major complication of trauma is the development of a urethral stricture (see below).

Urethritis is in?ammation of the urethra from infection.

Causes The sexually transmitted disease GONORRHOEA affects the urethra, mainly in men, and causes severe in?ammation and urethritis. Non-speci?c urethritis (NSU) is an in?ammation of the urethra caused by one of many di?erent micro-organisms including BACTERIA, YEAST and CHLAMYDIA.

Symptoms The classic signs and symptoms are a urethral discharge associated with urethral pain, particularly on micturition (passing urine), and DYSURIA.

Treatment This involves taking urethral swabs, culturing the causative organism and treating it with the appropriate antibiotic. The complications of urethritis include stricture formation.

Stricture This is an abrupt narrowing of the urethra at one or more places. Strictures can be a result of trauma or infection or a congenital abnormality from birth. Rarely, tumours can cause strictures.

Symptoms The usual presenting complaint is one of a slow urinary stream. Other symptoms include hesitancy of micturition, variable stream and terminal dribbling. Measurement of the urine ?ow rate may help in the diagnosis, but often strictures are detected during cystoscopy (see CYSTOSCOPE).

Treatment The traditional treatment was the periodic dilation of the strictures with ‘sounds’

– solid metal rods passed into the urethra. However, a more permanent solution is achieved by cutting the stricture with an endoscopic knife (optical urethrotomy). For more complicated long or multiple strictures, an open operation (urethroplasty) is required.... urethra, diseases of and injury to

A group of symptoms of unknown cause. It mainly affects women, and occasionally men, with pain and discomfort in the lower abdomen, a frequent urge to urinate and, in women, pain in the area of the VULVA. Investigation rarely results in any abnormal ?ndings. Postmenopausal women (see MENOPAUSE), who are the most common sufferers, may have in?ammation of the vulva due to thinning of the tissues in that area. Treatment is supportive, with the patient being advised to drink a lot of ?uid and maintain a high standard of personal hygiene.... urethral syndrome

Flow of blood from the urethra... urethrorrhagia

Abnormal discharge from the urethra... urethrorrhea

 A tender easily-bleeding bright red swelling at the urinary outlet of the vagina. About the size of a large pill. Not cancerous but painful on intercourse and on passing urine. Treatment. Tincture Thuja, 5 drops in water morning and evening, internal. Topical application of much diluted oil of Eucalyptus over a long period has been successful. Surgical intervention usually successful. ... caruncle, urethral

See nongonococcal urethritis.... nonspecific urethritis

The procedure in which a urethral stricture in a male is widened by inserting a slim, roundtipped instrument through the opening of the urethra at the tip of the penis.... urethral dilatation

A fluid that flows from the urethra in some cases of urethritis caused by infection.... urethral discharge

A rare condition in which the male urethra becomes narrowed and sometimes shortened as a result of shrinkage of scar tissue within its walls. Scar tissue may form after injury to the urethra or after persistent urethritis. The stricture may make passing urine or ejaculation difficult or painful, and it may cause some deformation of the penis when erect. Treatment is usually by urethral dilatation.... urethral stricture

Formerly known as nonspecific urethritis, inflammation of the urethra due to a cause other than gonorrhoea. Worldwide, nongonococcal urethritis is a very common type of sexually transmitted infection.Almost 50 per cent of cases are known to be caused by chlamydia trachomatis (see chlamydial infections); others are caused by the virus that causes herpes simplex, trichomonas vaginalis infections

(see trichomoniasis), or other microorganisms. In the remainder of cases, the cause remains unknown.

In men, the infection usually causes a clear or a purulent urethral discharge, often accompanied by pain or discomfort on passing urine. The equivalent condition in women, called nonspecific genital infection, may not cause symptoms unless there are complications.

Treatment may be difficult if the cause of symptoms cannot be determined. Antibiotic drugs, such as doxycycline and erythromycin, are given. Follow-up visits may be advised after treatment.

In men, epididymitis, prostatitis and urethral stricture (narrowing of the urethra) can occur as complications of nongonococcal urethritis. Reiter’s syndrome (in which there is arthritis and conjunctivitis as well as urethritis) occurs as a complication in some men who develop nongonococcal urethritis.

In women, pelvic inflammatory disease and cysts of the Bartholin’s glands may occur. Ophthalmia neonatorum, a type of conjunctivitis, sometimes develops in babies born to women with chlamydial cervicitis.... nongonococcal urethritis

A set of symptoms, usually affecting women, that are very similar to cystitis but which occur in the absence of infection.... urethral syndrome, acute

n. surgical restoration of the continuity of the urethra. This may be required following laceration of the urethra.... urethrorrhaphy

n. a discharge from the urethra. This is a symptom of *urethritis.... urethrorrhoea

n. an *endoscope, consisting of a fine tube fitted with a light and lenses, for examination of the interior of the male urethra, including the prostate region. —urethroscopy n.... urethroscope

n. a *stricture of the urethra.... urethrostenosis

n. the operation of creating an opening of the urethra in the perineum in men. This can be permanent, to bypass a severe *stricture of the urethra in the penis, or it can form the first stage of an operation to cure a stricture of the posterior section of the urethra (*urethroplasty).... urethrostomy

n. the operation of cutting a short *stricture in the urethra. It is performed under direct vision with a urethrotome. This instrument, a type of *endoscope, consists of a sheath down which is passed a fine knife, which is operated by the surgeon viewing the stricture down an illuminated telescope.... urethrotomy