Urination Problems

Pain and difficulty with urination are common conditions in both men and women. But urination problems may be a sign of more serious problems. Follow this chart for more information about these symptoms and their care.

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Step 2

Answering Questions

  • Do you have pain or burning with urination?

  • Is your urine cloudy?

  • Do you have a fever and/or backache or abdominal pain? Do you have nausea and/or are you vomiting?

  • Do you have sharp, knife-like, intense pains in your back or abdomen that seem to shoot down or move toward your groin?

  • Are you a man, and do you have an ache under your scrotum or deep inside your pelvis?

  • Are you a man, and do you have a white discharge from the tip of your penis? Does anything other than semen or urine come out of the tip of your penis?

  • Do you have the urge to urinate after just using the restroom, and are you only urinating small amounts at a time?

  • Are you producing more urine than usual?

  • Have you been losing weight, drinking lots of fluids, and/or have a family history of diabetes?

  • Are you a woman, and do you leak urine when you cough or sneeze?

  • Are you a man, and do you leak or dribble urine after you urinate, or do you have problems starting the urine stream, or do you wake many times at night to urinate?

  • Do you have blood in your urine?

Back to Questions
Step 3

Possible Causes

  • Diagnosis

    Pain with urination and fever, along with abdominal or back pain and/or nausea/vomiting may be caused by an infection of the kidneys called PYELONEPHRITIS.

    Self Care

    See your doctor right away.

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  • Diagnosis

    You may have a KIDNEY STONE or another serious problem.

    Self Care

    EMERGENCY
    See your doctor or go to the emergency room right away.

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  • Diagnosis

    You may have PROSTATITIS, an infection of the prostate gland.

    Self Care

    See your doctor.

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  • Diagnosis

    These may be symptoms of an INFECTION such as URETHRITIS or a SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTION, such as GONORRHEA.

    Self Care

    See your doctor right away.

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  • Diagnosis

    Your symptoms may be caused by an infection in the bladder, called CYSTITIS, or from an irritation of the bladder, called INTERSTITIAL CYSTITIS, or from a KIDNEY STONE stuck in the bladder.

    Self Care

    See your doctor.

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  • Diagnosis

    You may have DIABETES, a condition in which your body lacks insulin or doesn’t use it in the right way. This leads to an increase of blood sugar in your body and makes you want to drink water all the time.

    Self Care

    See your doctor.

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  • Diagnosis

    Your symptoms may be from a weakness in the bladder due to a previous childbirth or aging, called STRESS INCONTINENCE.

    Self Care

    Absorbent protection (adult diapers or pads) may be helpful. Kegel exercises may help strengthen muscles that support the bladder. See your doctor.

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  • Diagnosis

    You may have a problem with your PROSTATE GLAND. Your symptoms may be caused by a benign (non-cancerous) ENLARGEMENT or a more serious condition such as INFECTION or CANCER.

    Self Care

    See your doctor.

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  • Diagnosis

    You may have a KIDNEY STONE, a TUMOR in the kidney or bladder, a BLADDER INFECTION, TRAUMA to your kidney, or possibly a BLEEDING DISORDER.

    Self Care

    See your doctor right away.

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  • Self Care

    For more information, please talk to your doctor. If you think the problem is serious, call your doctor right away.

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