What tests and checks are available?

Pain and quality of life assessment
You may be asked to fill out a questionnaire about your pain—how often it happens, how strong it is, and how it’s affecting your life, including things like your mental health or sexual wellbeing.

Physical examination
Your doctor may need to examine your genitals and press gently around your lower tummy and pelvis to check for pain, lumps, or anything unusual. It can feel a little awkward, but the exam is important for understanding what’s going on.

Urine test
You’ll be asked to give a urine sample to check for signs of infection. Depending on where you’re being seen, this might be tested on-site or sent to a lab.

Sexually transmitted disease (STD) check
Even if you don’t think you’ve been exposed to an STI recently, your doctor may suggest a urethral swab. This is a quick test where a small, soft stick (like a cotton swab) is gently inserted a short way into the urethra, the tube that carries urine from your bladder out of your body when you pee, to check for infections like chlamydia or gonorrhoea. These can cause pain and other symptoms even if you don’t have any obvious signs.

For women: A small cotton bud is gently placed into the urethra to collect a sample. A second sample might be taken from your cervix.
For men: The swab is gently inserted about 2 cm into the urethra.

The test can be uncomfortable, but it’s quick.

Cystoscopy
A cystoscopy is a test where a thin camera (called a cystoscope) is inserted into your urethra to check inside your bladder for any other possible causes of your symptoms.

This video shows how a cystoscopy is done in more detail.

Possible treatments