Where am I: About > Patients > Patient case study
Patient case study
Carol first realised something was wrong after the birth of her first daughter. She was 23 years old. Her symptoms began with severe lower back and bladder pain, as well as a constant feeling of nausea. Over the next 10 years, Carol went back and forth to her GP who thought she was suffering from bacterial cystitis and prescribed several courses of antibiotics, despite urine samples showing no signs of infection. The antibiotics had no effect but despite Carol’s continued pain and discomfort, her GP was adamant nothing more could be done to help her. Carol felt frustrated and very alone.
After the birth of her second daughter, Carol had a hysterectomy. Soon after the operation she was once again prescribed antibiotics for what her new doctor thought was a kidney infection. But it soon became clear that once again, the antibiotics were not helping. Carol was still in pain and had a high temperature. Carol’s GP finally referred her to a urologist who suggested she have a cystoscopy. The results unfortunately failed to provide a concrete diagnosis, but the urologist explained to Carol that her symptoms might be linked to a condition called interstitial cystitis (IC), which can often be hard to detect at first. This was the first time Carol had ever heard about IC.
Download Carol's story