This information explains how to care for yourself after your cystoscopy (sis-TOS-koh-pee).
What To Expect After Your Cystoscopy
You may have numbness (loss of feeling) from the local anesthesia used during your cystoscopy. Local anesthesia is medication that numbs an area of your body during your procedure. The numbness should go away within 1 to 3 hours.
You may feel burning when you urinate (pee) for the next 2 to 3 days. Your urine may also look pink. This can happen if there’s a small amount of blood in it.
You may see small pieces of tissue in your urine if you had a fulguration (ful-guh-RAY-shun) during your cystoscopy. The tissue will look like tiny pink pieces of skin.
What To Do After Your Cystoscopy
Drink at least 8 (8-ounce) cups of fluids, such as water, every day for the next few days. The liquids will help flush your bladder. This is important to help lower the amount of bleeding you may have. It also helps prevent infection.
You can limit how much you drink after to avoid trips to the bathroom during the night.
You can go back to doing your usual activities after your cystoscopy. When there’s no blood in your urine, you can go back to having sexual activity.
If you’re feeling pain, ask your healthcare provider if it’s safe to take medication, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol). If you keep feeling pain after taking pain medication, call your healthcare provider.
Read the labels on all the medications you’re taking. This is very important if you’re taking acetaminophen. Acetaminophen is an ingredient in many over the counter and prescription medications. Taking too much can harm your liver. Do not take more than one medication that has acetaminophen without talking with a member of your care team.
Getting Your Cystoscopy Results
Your urine cytology results will be available in 3 to 4 days. This test will tell us if there are cancer cells in your urine. Usually, your healthcare provider will only call you if the test results are abnormal (not normal).
You can see your test results in MyMSK, our patient portal, in about 7 days. You can also call their office to ask for your results.
If you had a biopsy done, the results will be available within 1 week. Your healthcare provider will usually call you with the results. You can also call their office to ask.
When To Call Your Healthcare Provider
Call your healthcare provider if you:
- See bright red blood or blood clots in your urine.
- Have pink-colored urine for more than 3 days.
- Feel burning when you urinate that lasts more than 3 days.
- Have pain that doesn’t go away, even after taking pain medication.
- Have a fever of 100.4 °F (38 °C) or higher.
- Have shaking chills.
- Have lower back pain.
- Cannot urinate.
- Have little or no urine when you urinate.
- Have any questions or concerns about your procedure.
