Reader companion · English v4.8 · Updated September 15, 2026

Start here

Start Here — Match Your Main Concern to the Right Chapter

• Blood in the urine: begin with Chapter 10. Heavy bleeding with clots or difficulty urinating belongs on the urgent pathway in Chapter 2.

• Burning, urgency, or suspected infection: begin with Chapters 9, 13, and 14. Fever, shaking chills, flank pain, vomiting, confusion, or rapid decline requires prompt care.

• Frequency, urgency, leakage, weak stream, retention, or waking at night: begin with Chapters 5–12. Chapter 4 explains how testing is chosen.

• Prostate enlargement, PSA, biopsy, or prostate cancer decisions: begin with Chapters 17–22.

• Erectile, hormonal, fertility, ejaculation, orgasm, curvature, or female sexual-function concerns: begin with Chapters 23–27 and 33–35.

• Kidney stones, kidney function, cysts, or masses: begin with Chapters 28–31. Severe flank pain with fever or persistent vomiting requires urgent assessment.

• Diet, exercise, metabolic health, aging, sleep, and independence: begin with Chapters 36–44.

• Questions about laboratory tests, imaging, cystoscopy, urodynamics, treatment choices, watching, escalation, or second opinions: begin with Chapters 45–50.

• To organize the whole plan on one page: use Chapter 51 and the tools that follow.

Topic Finder by Chapter

Use this chapter-based finder to return to a subject without relying on edition-specific page numbers. The same topic may appear in several chapters because diagnosis, testing, and treatment are deliberately separated.

Blood in the urine — Chapter 10

Bladder Botox — Chapters 6 and 48

Bladder cancer evaluation — Chapters 10, 46, and 47

Bladder diary — Chapters 3, 5, 6, and 8

Bladder pain and pelvic pain — Chapter 15

Burning with urination — Chapters 9 and 13

Cystoscopy — Chapters 10 and 47

Diet and urinary health — Chapter 36

Ejaculation, orgasm, and penile curvature — Chapter 26

Erectile dysfunction — Chapters 23 and 24

Exercise and urologic health — Chapter 37

Female bladder health — Chapters 32–35

Female sexual function — Chapter 34

Fertility — Chapter 27

Flank pain and kidney stones — Chapter 28

Frequent urination — Chapter 5

Hormonal reserve and testosterone — Chapters 25 and 38

Imaging: ultrasound, CT, MRI, and nuclear studies — Chapter 46

Kidney cysts and masses — Chapter 30

Kidney function and protection — Chapter 31

Kidney-stone prevention — Chapter 29

Leakage and incontinence — Chapter 12

Menopause and urinary symptoms — Chapter 33

Nocturia — Chapters 8 and 42

Office testing and urodynamics — Chapter 47

Overactive bladder and urgency — Chapter 6

Pelvic-floor dysfunction — Chapter 35

Preparing for a urology visit — Chapter 3

Priapism and other emergencies — Chapter 2

Prostate enlargement — Chapters 17–19

Prostate cancer diagnosis and decisions — Chapters 20–22

PSA — Chapter 20

Recurrent urinary infections — Chapters 13 and 14

Renal masses and surveillance — Chapter 30

Scrotal and testicular pain — Chapter 16

Second opinions — Chapter 50

Treatment trade-offs — Chapter 48

Urgent warning signs — Chapter 2

Urinary retention and incomplete emptying — Chapter 11

Urethral stricture — Chapter 7

Weak stream and difficulty urinating — Chapter 7

Chapter finder

Chapter 1: The Symptom Is the Beginning, Not the Diagnosis
Chapter 2: What Makes a Urologic Problem Urgent?
Chapter 3: Preparing for a Urology Visit
Chapter 4: Understanding the Diagnostic Ladder
Chapter 5: Frequent Urination
Chapter 6: Urgency and Urgency Incontinence
Chapter 7: Weak Stream and Difficulty Urinating
Chapter 8: Waking at Night to Urinate
Chapter 9: Painful Urination
Chapter 10: Blood in the Urine
Chapter 11: Urinary Retention
Chapter 12: Urinary Leakage
Chapter 13: Urinary Tract Infection or Something Else?
Chapter 14: Recurrent Urinary Infections
Chapter 15: Pelvic Pain, Prostatitis, and Bladder Pain
Chapter 16: Testicular and Scrotal Pain
Chapter 17: The Enlarged Prostate
Chapter 18: BPH Medications
Chapter 19: Choosing a Prostate Procedure
Chapter 20: PSA Without Panic
Chapter 21: MRI, Biopsy, and Prostate Cancer Diagnosis
Chapter 22: Prostate Cancer Treatment Decisions
Chapter 23: Erectile Dysfunction as a Health Signal
Chapter 24: The Erectile Dysfunction Treatment Ladder
Chapter 25: Low Libido and Low Testosterone
Chapter 26: Ejaculation, Orgasm, and Penile Curvature
Chapter 27: Male Fertility
Chapter 28: Flank Pain and Kidney Stones
Chapter 29: Preventing Kidney Stones
Chapter 30: Kidney Cysts, Masses, and Incidental Findings
Chapter 31: Protecting Kidney Function
Chapter 32: The Female Bladder Across the Lifespan
Chapter 33: Menopause, Vaginal Health, and Urinary Symptoms
Chapter 34: Female Sexual Function: Arousal, Pain, and Tissue Health
Chapter 35: Pelvic-Floor Dysfunction
Chapter 36: Diet as Urologic Medicine
Chapter 37: Exercise as Preventive Urology
Chapter 38: Muscle, Metabolism, and Hormonal Reserve
Chapter 39: The 12-Week Urologic Health Reset
Chapter 40: Sexual Function as a Vital Sign
Chapter 41: Urinary Function as a Marker of Aging
Chapter 42: Nocturia, Sleep, and Cardiometabolic Health
Chapter 43: The Urologic Healthspan Assessment
Chapter 44: Preserving Independence, Intimacy, and Quality of Life
Chapter 45: Urine and Blood Tests Explained
Chapter 46: Ultrasound, CT, MRI, and Nuclear Imaging
Chapter 47: Cystoscopy, Urodynamics, and Office Testing
Chapter 48: Medication, Procedure, or Surgery?
Chapter 49: When to Watch, When to Treat, and When to Escalate
Chapter 50: How to Get a Better Second Opinion
Chapter 51: Your Personal Urology Plan