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Urination is generally a painless process whereby the body eliminates waste matter. However, once in a while, urination may be accompanied by feelings of pain, a burning sensation or pressure in the pelvic area. These signs generally indicate a problem with the urinary tract or the reproductive system.

What should you keep an eye out for?

Pain or a burning sensation during urination may or may not be accompanied by the following symptoms:

• An urge to urinate more often
• A reduction in the amount of urine passed
• Pain may occur before, during, or just after urinating
• Pain may be felt at the point where the urine passes out of the body or felt deep inside the groin or even in the lower back
• Pain may also be felt in the genital area
• Cloudy urine
• Marked color change in the urine
• Urine with foul smelling odor
• Incontinence
• Frequent urination at night
• Pain during sexual intercourse
• Rash or lesions around the genital area

If at any point of time you experience any of the following symptoms, call your doctor immediately:

• There is an unusual discharge from the penis or vagina
• The pain lasts for more than a day
• There is a burning sensation while urinating blood
• You have a fever
• Severe pain in the pelvis or lower back
• Loss of consciousness

Why does it happen?

Causes of pain and burning while urination include:

• The most common cause of pain when urinating is an infection. Urinary tract infections can affect men, women and children across all ages
• An inflammation somewhere along the urinary tract could also cause symptoms such as pain or burning while urinating
• A sensation of burning while peeing may also be a sign of urethritis in men. This condition is often a result of a sexually transmitted disease such as Gonorrhea or Chlamydia
• Painful urination may occur due to an allergic reaction to certain products such as bubble baths, soaps, or scented lotions
• Women may also suffer discomfort during urination due to menopause (atrophic vaginitis), yeast infections, or a herpes infection
• Tumor in the bladder
• Prostate cancer
• Cervicitis
• Chemotherapy
• Kidney stones
• Long-term use of a catheter in the bladder
• Other possible causes of painful urination include interstitial or radiation cystitis or because of a prostate infection
• In rare cases, painful urination may be a sign of a life-threatening disease such as a kidney infection (pyelonephritis)

How can you treat painful urination?

If left untreated, painful urination can lead to severe complications such as permanent damage to the kidneys, renal failure, septicemia, spread of cancer and shock. Treatment for painful urination will depend on the cause of the condition and the underlying disorder. In addition to conventional medical treatments such as antibiotics, analgesics, anti-fungal creams and suppositories, there are also a number of complementary therapies that are effective. Other natural and home remedies for treating burning and pain while urinating include:

• A popular home remedy for urinary tract infections is cranberry juice. Drinking anti-oxidant rich cranberry or blueberry juice daily will help treat the infection
• According to the experts, bearberry leaves contain hydroquinone and arbutin that help cure a bladder infection due to their strong anti-bacterial properties. You can get bearberry leave capsules from health food stores. Be warned though that taking bearberry leaves for more than five days in a row can lead to a damaged liver
• Another way to alleviate the burning sensation while urinating is to balance out the acidity of the urine by increasing your pH level. You can do this by adding half a teaspoon of baking soda to a glass of water and drinking this at the first sign of burning or discomfort during urination. Drinking 8 to 10 glasses of plain water a day also helps provide relief as it flushes the urinary tract of bacteria

References:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003145.htm
http://goaskalice.columbia.edu/ouch-burning-pee-urinary-tract-infection-uti