Cystitis - Treatment

Since cystitis is a bacterial infection, it can be treated with antibiotics. Some drugs that are commonly used include penicillin, ampicillin (pronounced AMP-ih-SIL-in), amoxicillin (pronounced uh-MOK-sih-SIL-in), sulfisoxazole (pronounced SUL-fuh-SOK-suh-zole), trimethoprim (pronounced tri-METH-o-prim), cephalosporin (pronounced seff-a-lo-SPORE-in), or fluoroquinolone (pronounced FLOOR-o-KWIN-o-lone). Women usually respond to antibiotic treatment in less than three days. Men usually require a longer period of treatment, ranging from seven to ten days.

Alternative Treatment

Some forms of alternative treatment involve changes in one's diet. Practitioners often recommend eliminating all sugar from the diet and drinking lots of water. Some herbal remedies that are suggested include garlic, goldenseal, and bearberry. These herbs are thought to kill bacteria. Acupuncture (the Chinese therapy of inserting fine needles into the skin) and homeopathic medicine may also be effective in treating cystitis.