Symptoms of a urinary tract infection (UTI) depend on where the infection occurs within the urinary tract.
Bladder infection (also known as “cystitis”) can cause symptoms such as:
- Burning on passing urine (dysuria)
- Pain on urination
- Frequent urination
- Cloudy or smelly urine
- Visible blood in the urine (haematuria)
- Bladder discomfort and pain
- The feeling of needing to go all the time and that the bladder is still not empty
- Possible symptoms with more severe bladder infections include:
- Fever
- Feeling generally unwell
- Feeling nauseous
- Vomiting can occur
Urethritis or infection/ inflammation in the urethra can cause symptoms such as:
- Burning on urination
- Pain on urination
- Discharge from the urethra (which can be seen as discharge from the penis in men)
Prostatitis (or infection in the prostate in men) can cause symptoms of cystitis as well as:
- Pain in the perineum (area between the back passage and testes)
- Feeling unwell
- High fever
- Difficulty in passing urine
- Urinary retention (inability to pass urine)
Epididymoorchitis (or infection in the testis and epididymis in men) can cause symptoms such as:
- Pain in the testis
- Swelling in the testis which comes on suddenly
- Reddened and inflamed skin over the testis
- With symptoms of cystitis
Pyelonephritis (or infection in the kidney) can cause symptoms such as:
- Back pain – especially more on one side than the other
- High fever
- Chills or rigors
- Feeling very unwell
- Nausea
- Vomiting
