INTRODUCTION: Cystitis glandularis is a rare, benign, proliferative process of the mucosa of the urinary bladder characterized by epithelial proliferation and occasional formation of intestinal glands. Although its etiology is unknown, cystitis glandularis has been associated with chronic stimulation of the mucosa of the urinary bladder due to urinary tract infection, obstruction, and indwelling catheters, which may lead to overproductive changes in mucosal cells and glandular metaplasia of transitional epithelial cells. CASE REPORT: A 55-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with urinary symptoms that did not respond to alpha-blockers. On ultrasound, a vegetating lesion in the vesical trigone was observed. After two unsuccessful endoscopic resections of the lesion, the patient developed bilateral ureterohydronephrosis. Considering the extension of the lesion and the persistence of urinary symptoms, cystoprostatectomy with an ileal neobladder reconstruction was performed. The histopathological examination confirmed cystitis glandularis. DISCUSSION: There are two forms of cystitis glandularis: intestinal and typical. The latter is more frequent, while the intestinal is associated with mucin production and adenocarcinoma of the bladder. Clinically, cystitis glandularis manifests with hematuria and irritative and obstructive urinary complains typical of chronic cystitis. However, most cases of cystitis glandularis are asymptomatic. In the present report, invasive treatment was mandatory, due to failure in transurethral resection and to development of hydronephrosis.
urinary bladder; cystitis glandularis; urinary obstruction
