Selective type IV collagen defects in the urothelial basement membrane in interstitial cystitis.

PURPOSE

The study sought to identify changes in the urothelial basement membrane (UBM) associated with interstitial cystitis (IC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Immunohistochemical assessment of bladder biopsies from IC patients and controls was compared with clinical and histologic findings.

RESULTS

Selective decreases or loss of type IV collagen staining, but not laminin, were found in the UBM of 5 of 11 IC patients with no change in type IV collagen staining of other bladder wall sites.

CONCLUSIONS

The loss of type IV collagen may represent a primary or secondary event and could alter the UBM's role in permeability, thereby contributing to the pathogenesis of IC in the subset of IC patients exhibiting this change.