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Yang JY, Wei W, Lan YL, Liu JQ, Wang HB, Li S. Role of Bladder Hydrodistention and Intravesical Sodium Hyaluronate in the Treatment of Interstitial Cystitis. Urol J. 2015 Dec 23;12(6):2417-21.

This study of 21 patients with interstitial cystitis (IC) provides evidence that bladder hydrodistention and intravesical sodium hyaluronate is effective for symptom relief. The patients, all of whom had severe IC that responded poorly to previous treatments, received the treatment under nerve block or anesthesia once weekly. Each patient received a total of 4-6 treatments. While the therapy was generally well tolerated, the investigators did report 2 suspected bladder ruptures following bladder expansion, and blood in the urine was sometimes noted after treatment. The investigators re-evaluated each patient right before their second weekly treatment, and found that overall, the IC patients experienced a decrease in the frequency of urination, an improvement in maximum urinary output, and a significant decrease in pain. Moreover, the investigators found that the longer patients were treated, the more likely they were to benefit from the treatment. Based on these findings, the investigators stated that bladder hydrodistention under anesthesia is a treatment that can provide immediate relief of pain, as well as alleviation of frequent urination.