Dysuria · Burning when you pee · Clinical evaluation
Painful urination (dysuria) — clinical evaluation online
Burning, stinging, or pain when you pee is usually a UTI — but it can also be an STI, prostatitis, yeast infection, or kidney stone. A licensed clinician evaluates your symptoms, orders the right test (urinalysis, urine culture, STI NAAT), and prescribes when antibiotics or antifungals are appropriate.
Board-certified clinicians · No membership required · Medicare, commercial insurance or $50 self-pay for the Ondoc visit
Not every burning-pee is a UTI
Dysuria can be UTI, chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, yeast, prostatitis, or a kidney stone. A clinician picks the right test instead of empirically firing antibiotics at the wrong bug.
Treatment matched to the assessment
An uncomplicated UTI may be treated with antibiotics after clinical review. Other causes, recurrent symptoms or warning signs may need testing or in-person evaluation.
Testing routed to a lab near you
When needed: urinalysis with reflex culture, urine STI NAAT (chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis), or imaging referral for suspected stones. Results reviewed by an Ondoc clinician.
What you get
- Clinical review of painful urination / dysuria
- Urinalysis + urine culture or STI NAAT lab order
- Antibiotic or antifungal treatment when appropriate for the assessed cause
- Pyridium (phenazopyridine) for symptom relief
- Escalation plan for fever, flank pain, blood in urine, pregnancy, recurrent UTI, or suspected stones
FAQs
What does painful urination (dysuria) mean?
Dysuria is pain, burning, or stinging when you urinate. It usually points to inflammation or infection somewhere along the urinary tract or genital area — most commonly a UTI, but also STIs (chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis), yeast infection, bacterial vaginosis, prostatitis in men, kidney stones, or irritation from soaps and spermicides.
How does an online visit for painful urination work?
You describe your symptoms (onset, associated fever, back or flank pain, discharge, blood in urine, sexual history, prior UTIs, pregnancy status). The clinician decides whether to treat empirically, order urinalysis/culture, order STI testing, or send you in person. Any lab order is sent to LabCorp or Quest near you.
Can I get antibiotics for a UTI without seeing a doctor in person?
Yes — uncomplicated UTIs in non-pregnant adults with classic symptoms are routinely treated by telehealth per IDSA guidance. Fever, flank pain, blood in urine, vomiting, pregnancy, or recurrent UTI need in-person evaluation and the clinician will tell you.
What antibiotic will I get?
First-line options for uncomplicated cystitis are nitrofurantoin (Macrobid) 100 mg twice daily for 5 days, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (Bactrim DS) twice daily for 3 days, or single-dose fosfomycin (Monurol) 3 g. The choice depends on your history, allergies, pregnancy status, and local resistance patterns.
What if my urine burns but there's no infection?
Burning with a negative culture can have several causes — chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, interstitial cystitis, urethritis from irritants, atrophic vaginitis, or early pyelonephritis. The clinician decides which tests, if any, fit your history and adjusts the plan.
Painful urination in men — is it a UTI or something else?
In younger men without catheters, dysuria is much more often a sexually transmitted urethritis (chlamydia or gonorrhea) than a UTI. In older men it can be prostatitis or BPH-related. The clinician orders urine NAAT and urinalysis and treats accordingly.
What if I'm pregnant?
Any burning urination during pregnancy needs prompt evaluation because asymptomatic bacteriuria and UTIs increase risk of pyelonephritis and preterm labor. We treat pregnancy-safe (nitrofurantoin, cephalexin, fosfomycin) and coordinate with your OB.
When is painful urination an emergency?
Go to an ER or urgent care for high fever, shaking chills, flank or back pain, vomiting, confusion, inability to urinate, gross blood clots in urine, or severe testicular pain — those can mean pyelonephritis, obstructing kidney stone, or testicular torsion.