Symptoms of urethritis
Depending on the duration of the inflammatory process in the urethra, acute and chronic forms of urethritis are distinguished. At the same time, the clinical manifestations of the disease are most often and intensively observed in men than in women due to the anatomical features of the male urethra — they have it narrower and longer.
Symptoms of acute urethritis
The main manifestations of acute pathology are pain, pain and burning when urinating, especially at the beginning of this process. In addition, patients often note itching, swelling and redness of the skin in the genital area and perineum, which gives them some discomfort. In the morning, they have abundant discharge from the urethra, usually of a mucopurulent nature, having a greenish tint and an unpleasant odor.
Symptoms of chronic urethritis
In the absence of timely therapy of the acute form of pathology, its chronic course develops. It is often characterized by a weakening and even complete disappearance of the clinical manifestations of the disease, but this is only a sign of suppression of infection by the immune forces of the body or certain medications. As a rule, most patients finish the treatment process at this stage and, thus, make a big mistake, since the pathogens of infection remain in the body until the first episode of a decrease in immune protection. Chronic urethritis most often occurs torpidly with alternating periods of exacerbation and remission. Its main symptoms are the following signs: painful urination, discharge of pus from the urethra, as well as its significant narrowing (stricture), which is characterized by swelling, sticking of the edges of the urethra and weakening of the urine stream.
In some cases, the symptoms of urethritis appear slightly or completely absent, which is especially characteristic for women due to the peculiarities of the structure of their genitourinary system. The severity of clinical manifestations depends mainly on the severity and duration of inflammation. Asymptomatic course of the disease is, as a rule, a sign of non-infectious urethritis.
