1. Bladder Distention or Instillation
Having your bladder filled with water in a procedure called bladder distention may be used to diagnose your interstitial cystitis (IC), but it can also serve as short-term therapy. It is thought that this treatment temporarily increases your bladder capacity and reduces the pain associated with near-constant bladder pressure, but the relief tends to be fairly short lived. For more effective treatment, you can have a procedure done called a bladder instillation. In this treatment, your bladder can be filled with a solution of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), which is held for about 15 minutes before you empty your bladder. Instillation will be given every week or so for six to eight to 8 weeks, and then repeated as needed. If your IC is going to respond to DMSO treatment, you should notice improvement in your symptoms within three months of beginning treatment. If you are willing to learn to self-catheterize, you may even be able to perform this procedure at home with your doctor's prescription for DMSO.
2. Oral Medications
The drug pentosan polysulfate sodium (Elmiron) is the only oral medication that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat interstitial cystitis. Doctors aren't quite sure how it works, but it is thought to protect the bladder walls from irritation by providing them with a protective coating. Treatment with Elmiron must be long term, and it may take up to six months to provide you with significant relief from your IC symptoms. Other medications you can use to relieve your IC symptoms include pain relievers such as ibuprofen, naproxen, aspirin and acetaminophen (with codeine, in cases where your pain is severe). You may also experience relief from your symptoms if you use certain types of antihistamines or tricyclic antidepressants. One particular antidepressant, amitriptyline (Elavil), may not only help to reduce your pain, but it can also increase your bladder capacity so you do not have to urinate nearly as often as before.
3. Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) treatment involves mild electrical pulses that stimulate the nerves to the bladder through the skin. These electric pulses enter the body for several minutes to several hours at a time, two or more times a day, via wires placed on the lower back or pubic area or by way of devices inserted into your vagina or rectum. Again, it isn't known exactly how this treatment works, but it is thought that the electrical pulses increase blood flow to your bladder, strengthen your pelvic muscles or help to trigger the release of pain-blocking chemicals in your body. If the TENS treatment works well for you, as should become apparent in three to four months; you can even arrange to have a device implanted under your skin that will deliver regular impulses to your bladder. This FDA-approved device, known as the Inter-Stim system, is used to treat the urinary frequency symptomatic of interstitial cystitis.
