Interstitial cystitis and lower urinary tract symptoms in males and females-the combined role of potassium and epithelial dysfunction.

Evidence of a lower urinary tract dysfunctional epithelium has been detected in women and men with interstitial cystitis and other complexes of lower urinary tract symptoms. Lower urinary tract dysfunctional epithelium can affect the bladder, the urethra, the labia or vaginal introitus in women, and the prostatic ducts and urethra in men. Because an individual with lower urinary tract dysfunctional epithelium may experience pain in one or more locations throughout the pelvis in any combination, the clinician cannot reliably establish a diagnosis based on "where it hurts." A useful diagnostic tool is the intravesical potassium sensitivity test, which detects the abnormal epithelial permeability of lower urinary tract dysfunctional epithelium. In most cases, lower urinary tract dysfunctional epithelium can be treated successfully.