[Interstitial cystitis: new concepts on etiology and diagnosis].

Interstitial cystitis is a common disease with non objective diagnostic criteria. In 1989 the National Institute of Health (NIH) defined symptoms and cystocopic findings in order to select patients to include in research programs on pathophysiology of interstitial cystitis. While there is no lack of theories, the etiology of interstitial cystitis remains obscure. Today, the general opinion is that the etiology is multifactorial and that we may be dealing with a syndrome rather than with a specific disease.