Urethritis

Urethritis is an infection of your urethra, which is the tube attached to your bladder that lets urine flow out of your body.

The Urethra

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• Urethritis is usually caused by bacteria that you get from sex (a sexually transmitted infection)

• Common symptoms are pain and burning when you urinate (pee) and feeling the need to urinate more often or more strongly

• Sometimes a fluid comes out of your urethra that is thick and yellowish green, or clear and thin

• Antibiotics usually treat urethritis

• If you don’t treat urethritis, you can get bladder or kidney infections or a sore in your urethra

The Urinary Tract

Urethritis is usually caused by:

• Gonorrhea

• Chlamydia

• Pain or burning when you urinate (pee)

• Feeling an urgent need to urinate often

• With gonorrhea, a thick, yellowish-green fluid coming out of your urethra

• With chlamydia, sometimes a clear, thin fluid coming out of your urethra

If your urethritis isn't treated, scar tissue can form that makes your urethra narrower (this is called a stricture). This narrowing can make it hard to urinate. It can also increase your risk of a bladder infection or kidney infection.

Your doctor can tell if you have urethritis based on:

• Tests of your urine or of the fluid coming out of your urethra

Doctors treat urethritis differently depending on the cause. Usually, they give antibiotics. If you have a sexually transmitted infection (STI), your sex partner will also need to be treated. You shouldn't have sex until you and your partner have been successfully treated.

STIs that cause urethritis may be prevented by using a condom during sex.