Chronic pelvic pain in children and adolescents

Susan L. Sager, Marc R. Laufer
In: Oxford Textbook of Paediatric Pain · 2013 · pp. 298–306 · doi:10.1093/med/9780199642656.003.0030 · W4206214997
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-10 ⓘ

This review discusses menstrual history, pelvic pain components, and differential diagnoses like endometriosis and nerve entrapment in adolescents with chronic abdominopelvic pain.

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Abstract

Abstract Pain due to pelvic pathology in children and adolescents is often described as abdominal pain, and frequently coexists with gastrointestinal symptoms due to neuronal cross talk and viscero-viscero or viscero-somatic convergence of sensory afferents. Dysmenorrhea is highly prevalent among adolescents yet is underreported. Like many chronic conditions where repetitive noxious stimuli are present, dysmenorrhea can be associated with central sensitization of pain pathways and visceral hyperalgesia. In this chapter the components of a menstrual history, the importance of obtaining a menstrual history in adolescents with abdominopelvic pain, and the indications for referral to an adolescent gynaecologist are discussed. Endometriosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of all females with chronic abdominopelvic pain of undetermined aetiology once the benchmark of thelarche has been met. Other overlooked causes of abdominopelvic pain include intercostal or subcostal neuralgias, nerve compression, and abdominal cutaneous nerve entrapment. A multidisciplinary approach to treatment of the patient with chronic abdominopelvic pain is discussed.

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Condition tags

endometriosischronic_pelvic_paindysmenorrhea

Citation neighborhood

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

References (47)

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