Dr. Dollacha Vanichakarn

When experiencing symptoms such as frequent urination, blood in urine, pelvic pain, difficulty urinating, or any problems with sexual function, you may contact a urologist.

That's a nephrologist. The functional disorders of the kidney and diseases (such as chronic kidney disease) come under the nephrologist's concern. A urologist treats structural or surgical disorders of the urinary tract and the male reproductive system.

Yes, Male infertility issues, such as sperm production problems or blockages in the reproductive tract, are recognised and treated by urologists.

A urologist would perform the most common tests: urine analysis, ultrasound, cystoscopy, urodynamic studies, PSA blood tests about prostate health, and CT for imaging kidney stones.

The truth is, you may not always need to pursue such an extreme form of treatment: medications, lifestyle changes, or alternative procedures often solve an issue without surgery. Surgery is considered an option if all other treatments have failed.

Most of them won't be painful. A few might cause slight discomfort, such as cystoscopy, which often gets minimised by local anaesthesia.

Absolutely. Women can consult a urologist for urinary tract infections, incontinence, prolapse of the bladder, and even kidney stones.

Urologists manage cancers of the kidney, bladder, prostate, testicles, and adrenal glands. They often work together with oncologists.