Reviewing Interstitial Cystitis Models and Treatments: A Focus on the Urothelium

Context: Interstitial cystitis is a multifactorial chronic and debilitating disease which is commonly associated with pain localized in the bladder region, increased urinary frequency, urgency and nocturia. Due to the high prevalence of pain in the population affected more recently the condition is often referred to as interstitial cystitis / bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS). Evidence Acquisition: Although IC presents with many different symptoms, researchers have formulated three different theories, which are not mutually exclusive, to explain IC pathology: the first is related to the alteration of the proteoglycan and protein junction composition, structure and presence in the urothelium. The second is an immune induced IC resulting from an increased number of activated mast cells in the bladder internal layers, such as detrusor muscle (DM), and mucosa/submucosa. The third type, which is closely related to the second one, is due to a sensory nerve sensitization as an effect of neurotrophic factors molecule