I have chronic UTI's but not Interstitial Cystitis. I'm so sorry you are having to add to your medicines!

UTIs can be a precursor... any kind of physical trauma attracts mast cells and causes degranulation.  The same thing can happen with GI infections!  Unfortunately, getting rid of the parasite or bacteria doesn't always solve the problem.

Heather

The other important study is this one;

It proves that so far Vistaril is the best treatment for IC and again Seriton deficits play a huge role in Mastocystitis disorder process,  see below;

Int J Immunopharmacol. 1998 Oct;20(10):553-63.

Hydroxyzine inhibits neurogenic bladder mast cell activation.

Minogiannis P, El-Mansoury M, Betances JA, Sant GR, Theoharides TC.

Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Tufts University School of Medicine, New England Medical Center, Boston, MA 02111, USA.
Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Increased numbers of activated mast cells have been documented close to substance P (SP) containing nerve endings in the bladders of patients with interstitial cystitis (IC), a painful, sterile bladder disorder occurring primarily in females. Many of these patients also suffer from allergies, but common antihistamines do not help. In line with the fact that IC symptoms worsen under stress, we recently showed that bladder mast cells could be activated by the stable acetylcholine (Ach) analogue carbachol and by immobilization stress. Preliminary data from open label studies indicated that the heterocyclic histamine-1 receptor antagonist (H-1r alpha) hydroxyzine reduces IC symptoms. We, therefore, investigated whether hydroxyzine could inhibit carbachol-induced bladder mast cell activation.

METHODS: Bladder pieces from male Sprague-Dawley rats were perfused with 10(-5) M carbachol, 10(-5) M SP, or 100 microg/ml compound 48/80 (C48/80), with or without preincubation with the designated concentrations of the H-1r alpha. Mast cell activation was assessed by release of exogenous 3H-serotonin and morphological evidence of secretion by light microscopy.

RESULTS: Carbachol at 10(-5) M triggered rat bladder mast cell serotonin release which represented a 65% increase over control. Equimolar concentrations of SP caused a 32% increase, while C48/80 had no effect. The heterocyclic piperazine H-1r alpha hydroxyzine reduced carbachol-induced serotonin release by 25% at 10(-6) M and 34% at 10(-5) M, both of which were statistically significant (P < 0.05). On the contrary, the well known H-1r alpha diphenhydramine had no inhibitory effect, while the mixed H-1r alpha and 5-hydroxytryptamine-receptor antagonist (5-HTr alpha) azatadine actually caused an 11% increase.

CONCLUSION: Hydroxyzine reduced carbachol-induced serotonin release from rat bladder in vitro through a mechanism which was unrelated to its H-1 receptor antagonistic properties. The ability of hydroxyzine to inhibit bladder mast cell activation by neurogenic stimuli along with its anticholinergic, anxiolytic and analgesic properties, may explain the clinical efficacy of this drug in reducing IC symptoms. Other, nonsedating, hydroxyzine analogues able to inhibit bladder mast cell activation may provide potentially new therapeutic approaches for IC.

PMID: 9839659 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Remona,
Is the Vistarl like an antihistamine or like zyrtec, clartin etc or singulair?  I cannot tolerate those at all.  They make my vertigo really bad and make me feel really weird.  Just wanted to check before I talk to my doc about it.  I am definitely willing to give it a try.  The elmiron is not giving me any problems but it is not doing a great job yet either.  I read that it can take the elmiron up to 6 months for it to work.  Who has time for that!  If it has not started working by my next appt in February I will ask him to switch me.  Thank you for all the studies and info!

Protein and RBC in your urine indicates kidney damage.  When is the last time you had a CMP?  You can use that to estimate how well (or poorly) your kidneys are functioning... it's called a GFR.  A 24-hour urine collection would also be a good idea if this has been a pattern for you.

The most common causes of kidney damage are diabetes and high blood pressure.  After that... autoimmune disorders.  I've had some mild kidney damage, but my last 24-hour urine collection was fine.  It's something to keep an eye on, but I don't expect it to be a big problem.  You can live quite nicely on as little as 20% function.

Heather

CMP stands for "complete metabolic profile."  If you know your level of creatinine (which is included in the CMP, at least in the US) you can calculate your GFR based on age, gender, and ethnicity.  If your blood pressure is normal and you don't have diabetes, then you do want to be monitored for autoimmune disorders... it's great that you're already seeing a rheumatologist.  You could also work with a GP who's willing to do a urine dip, CMP, and ANA every 6 to 12 months.  It's not hard to pick up problems before they turn serious

Here's the GFR calculator from the National Kidney Foundation:
http://www.kidney.org/professionals/KDOQI/gfr_calculator.cfm

Heather

I would ask for an appointment with a urologist if you want to tell the difference between IC and chronic UTIs.  You could also get a Rx for Vistaril (Atarax) and see if that helps... that would point towards IC.

Heather