Deeper layers of the bladder may be harmed if the infection becomes persistent, or chronic, or if the urinary tract is structurally abnormal. When infection is limited only to the urethra, the infection is known as urethritis , which is a common sexually transmitted disease in men. Acute Urethral Syndrome. People who have symptoms of cystitis but have a bacterial count lower than that ordinarily found in UTI are sometimes diagnosed with acute urethral syndrome. This condition is usually caused by E. coli or other bacteria that cause cystitis, but in lower numbers, or by a sexually transmitted disease such as Chlamydia or gonorrhea.
Women also can have the syndrome with no infection present.
As many as half of all women with cystitis may have infections of the upper urinary tract at the same time as cystitis. If bacteria are present in the urine, but a person has no symptoms of infection, the condition is called asymptomatic bacteriuria. Screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria is not necessary during most routine medical examinations, but is important for pregnant women and for people undergoing urologic surgery, in whom the condition can lead to serious infection. It also may be an indicator for serious health problems in the elderly. The recurrence is often defined as either reinfection or relapse.