A female patient presents with urinary urgency and frequency, a moderate fever, and suprapubic tenderness. What should you suspect?

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Multiple Choice

A female patient presents with urinary urgency and frequency, a moderate fever, and suprapubic tenderness. What should you suspect?

Urinary urgency and frequency with suprapubic tenderness in a woman point to a lower urinary tract infection, specifically cystitis. The bladder becomes irritated by bacterial infection, commonly from ascending bacteria such as E. coli, which leads to a frequent, urgent need to void and a sense of pressure or tenderness over the bladder area. A moderate fever can accompany the infection as the body mounts a response. This presentation fits better than the others: kidney stones typically produce sudden, severe flank or groin pain with possible blood in the urine, not just urinary urge and suprapubic discomfort. Pelvic inflammatory disease usually presents with lower abdominal or pelvic pain and cervical motion or adnexal tenderness, often with vaginal discharge. Benign prostatic hyperplasia occurs in older men and causes obstructive urinary symptoms, not a female patient.

Urinary urgency and frequency with suprapubic tenderness in a woman point to a lower urinary tract infection, specifically cystitis. The bladder becomes irritated by bacterial infection, commonly from ascending bacteria such as E. coli, which leads to a frequent, urgent need to void and a sense of pressure or tenderness over the bladder area. A moderate fever can accompany the infection as the body mounts a response.

This presentation fits better than the others: kidney stones typically produce sudden, severe flank or groin pain with possible blood in the urine, not just urinary urge and suprapubic discomfort. Pelvic inflammatory disease usually presents with lower abdominal or pelvic pain and cervical motion or adnexal tenderness, often with vaginal discharge. Benign prostatic hyperplasia occurs in older men and causes obstructive urinary symptoms, not a female patient.

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