Epidemiology of Chronic Pelvic Pain

Synonyms Recurrent Pelvic Pain; Pelvic Pain Syndrome; Chronic Pelvic Pain, Epidemiology Definition The most commonly used definition of chronic pelvic pain (CPP) for research purposes is: ‘Recurrent or constant pain in the lower abdominal region that has lasted for at least six months’. Thus, women with dysmenorrhea (painful periods) or dyspareunia (pain on intercourse) only are excluded, as are those with pelvic pain related to pregnancy or malignancy. The definition solely considers the location and duration of the pain; no assumptions are made about its cause (Campbell and Collett 1994). The International Association for the Study of Pain (1986) defines CPP without obvious pathology (CPPWOP) as ‘chronic or recurrent pelvic pain that cannot be sufficiently explained by an apparent physical cause’. The definition assumes a causal link between pelvic pathology and pain, which clinical experience and the published literature would suggest is not always the case. More recently, the... Access this chapter Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout Purchases are for personal use only References American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists (2004) ACOG Practice Bulletin No. 51. Chronic Pelvic Pain. Obstet Gynecol 103:589–605 Campbell F, Collett BJ (1994) Chronic Pelvic Pain. Br J Anaesth 73:571–573 International Association for the Study of Pain (1986) Classification of Chronic Pain. Definitions of Chronic Pain Syndromes and Definition of Pain Terms. Pain Suppl:1–221 Jamieson DJ, Steege JF (1996) The Prevalence of Dysmenorrhea, Dyspareunia, Pelvic Pain, and Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Primary Care Practices. Obstet Gynecol 87:55–59 Mahmood TA, Templeton AA, Thomson L et al. (1991) Menstrual Symptoms in Women with Pelvic Endometriosis. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 98:558–563 Mathias SD, Kuppermann M, Liberman RF et al. (1996) Chronic Pelvic Pain: Prevalence, Health-Related Quality of Life, and Economic Correlates. Obstet Gynecol 87:321–327 Prior A, Wilson K, Whorwell PJ et al. (1989) Irritable Bowel Syndrome in the Gynecological Clinic. Survey of 798 New Referrals. Dig Dis Sci 34:1820–1824 Whorwell PJ, McCallum M, Creed FH et al. (1986) Non-Colonic Features of Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Gut 27:37–40 Williams RE, Hartmann KE, Steege JF (2004) Documenting the Current Definitions of Chronic Pelvic Pain: Implications for Research. Obstet Gynecol 103:686–691 Zondervan KT, Yudkin PL, Vessey MP et al. (1998) The Prevalence of Chronic Pelvic Pain in Women in the UK – A Systematic Review. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 105:93–99 Zondervan KT, Yudkin PL, Vessey MP et al. (1999a) Prevalence and Incidence in Primary Care of Chronic Pelvic Pain in Women: Evidence from a National General Practice Database. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 106:1149–1155 Zondervan KT, Yudkin PL, Vessey MP et al. (1999b) Patterns of Diagnosis and Referral in Women Consulting for Chronic Pelvic Pain in UK Primary Care. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 106:1156–1161 Zondervan KT, Yudkin PL, Vessey MP et al. (2001a) The Community Prevalence of Chronic Pelvic Pain in Women and Associated Illness Behaviour. Br J Gen Pract 51:541–547 Zondervan KT, Yudkin PL, Vessey MP et al. (2001b) Chronic Pelvic Pain in the Community: Symptomatology, Investigations and Diagnoses. Am J Obstet Gynecol 184:1149–1155 Zondervan KT, Cardon LR, Kennedy SH et al. (2005) Multivariate Genetic Analysis of Chronic Pelvic Pain and Associated Phenotypes. Behav Genet 35:177–188 Author information Authors and Affiliations Editor information Editors and Affiliations Rights and permissions Copyright information © 2007 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg About this entry Cite this entry Kennedy, S., Zondervan, K. (2007). Epidemiology of Chronic Pelvic Pain. In: Schmidt, R., Willis, W. (eds) Encyclopedia of Pain. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-29805-2_1333 Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-29805-2_1333 Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg Print ISBN: 978-3-540-43957-8 Online ISBN: 978-3-540-29805-2 eBook Packages: MedicineReference Module Medicine