Treatment recommendations for the management of persistent pelvic pain: a systematic review of international clinical practice guidelines

Amelia K. Mardon, Hayley B. Leake, Kimberley Szeto, Thomas Astill, Astill T, T. Astill, Sandra Hilton, Hilton S, Graham Lorimer Moseley, G. Lorimer Moseley, Jane Chalmers, Katherine Jane Chalmers
BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology · 2021 · vol. 129(8) , pp. 1248–1260 · doi:10.1111/1471-0528.17064 · PMID:34919325 · W4200041464
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This systematic review identified 270 treatment recommendations across 20 clinical practice guidelines for persistent pelvic pain, finding variable quality and frequent recommendations for pharmaceutical and surgical interventions.

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Females with persistent pelvic pain (PPP) report great variability in the treatments recommended to them despite the availability of clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) that aim to standardise care. A clear consensus for the best practice care for PPP is required. OBJECTIVE: To identify and summarise treatment recommendations across CPGs for the management of PPP, and appraise their quality. SEARCH STRATEGY: MEDLINE, CENTRAL, EMBASE, EmCare, SCOPUS, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Web of Science Core Collection and relevant guideline databases were searched from their inception to June 2021. SELECTION CRITERIA: Included CPGs were those for the management of urogynaecological conditions in adult females published in English, of any publication date, and endorsed by a professional organisation or society. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: We screened 1379 records and included 20 CPGs. CPG quality was assessed using The Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation II (AGREE-II) tool. Descriptive synthesis compiled treatment recommendations across CPGs. MAIN RESULTS: The CPGs for seven conditions provided 270 individual recommendations. On quality appraisal, guidelines on average scored 'excellent' for the domains 'scope and purpose' (80.6%, SD = 13.3) and 'clarity and presentation' (74.4%, SD = 12.0); for other domains, average scores were satisfactory or poor. Four guidelines (for Endometriosis: NICE, RANZCOG and ESHRE; for polycystic ovary syndrome: Teede et al. 2018, International Evidence Based Guideline for the Assessment and Management of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia) were deemed recommended for use. Recommendations were most frequent for pharmaceutical and surgical interventions. Recommendations were variable for psychological, physiotherapy and other conservative interventions. CONCLUSIONS: The quality of CPGs for PPP is generally poor. Several CPGs endorse the consideration of biopsychosocial elements of PPP. Yet most recommend pharmaceutical, surgical and other biomedical interventions.

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Condition tags

chronic_pelvic_painendometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Practice Guidelines as Topic Adult Consensus Female Humans Pelvic Pain Pelvic Pain Pelvic Pain Pelvic Pain Pharmaceutical Preparations

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References (70)

Cited by (25)

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