Bladder Instill...What?!

When you have Interstitial Cystitis some of the treatments almost seem unheard of and often leave you wide-eyed thinking you've stepped into another dimension. And honestly, living with Interstitial Cystitis

Imagine walking into your Urologist or Urogynecologist and hearing him/her mention a bladder wash/instill for the first time. Your first thought is probably going to be "what in the world is that ?"

For those of you who have had these treatments you know exactly what I am referring to, but for those of you who don't, I will explain.

Bladder instillations or washes is a kind of intravesical therapy that involves using a catheter to instill a variety of medications up into the bladder that are suppose to help with the symptoms. These treatments were primarily developed to relieve symptoms immediately in terms of the burning pain, working as anesthetics agents with the lidocaine, but studies have also proven that these have some longterm positive effects overtime as well.


Consequently, these instills are said to help some patients in terms of helping the bladder lining heal itself over time with the use of Heparin (anti-inflammatory agent) and sometimes steroids such as decadron or kenalog.

The treatments usually start out 1-2 x's a week depending on your doctor's discretion, but will taper off as relief is found. But again the frequency and schedule all depends on your personalized treatment plan. For me, my doctor allowed me to do my instills at home up to 3 x's a week.

The medications used varies, but almost always includes some sort of local anesthetic such as lidocaine or maracaine. But regardless, the medications are referred to as a "cocktail." Some physicians will also add Elmiron to the treatment; instead of the patient taking it by mouth, it is taken out of the capsules and the medication is added to the mix ready to be instilled in the bladder.

These treatments are usually done in the office by a nurse, where the medication is drawn up and instilled. You are asked to lie on the table in the typical "stir-up" position where a catheter is passed through your urethra into your bladder. From there the end of the catheter is attached to a syringe known as a lure-lock, the cocktail is slowly poured from a sterile UA cup into the syringe where it is then drained into your bladder slowly with the flow of gravity.

The preparation for the treatment takes about 10-15 minutes due to having to draw up the medications in a sterile working area. Honestly the actual flowing of the medications into the bladder takes less time, which is around 3-5 minutes.

And one aspect of this treatment option is that if it works, some doctors actually allow patients to do these at home on their own, which is much more convenient than driving to the clinic every week for an instill. The patient is taught by their Dr's staff on how to perform the treatment and given written prescriptions for all the necessary medications/supplies needed to do so.

For more information please visit Bladder Instillations


*Disclaimer: I am not a substitute for a medical doctor and do not endorse any of the products listed above as I am an IC patient myself. All treatments and medications/supplements should be discussed with your medical doctor.*