Surgical treatment of interstitial cystitis. Indications, techniques, and results.

Conservative treatment should be satisfactory for 90 per cent of patients with interstitial cystitis. When severe symptoms are refractory and constitute a major disability, surgical treatment should be considered. Usually symptoms will have been present for at least three years before operative methods are used. If bladder capacity (general anesthetic) is greater than 400 ml, and the major symptom is bladder pain, denervation by cystolysis may be considered. If bladder capacity (general anesthetic) is less than 400 ml, supratrigonal cystectomy and substitution colocystoplasty is the treatment of choice.