Endometriosis and Abdominal Myofascial Pain in Adults and Adolescents

Endometriosis and myofascial pain are common disorders with significant impact on quality of life. Increasingly, these conditions are being recognized as highly interconnected through processes that have been described for more than a century. This review is directed to this interconnection through a description of the relationships of endometriosis to proposed mechanisms of pain and chronic pain physiology; the clinical assessment of myofascial representations of this pain; and an approach to the management of these interconnected disorders. Similar content being viewed by others

Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: •• Of major importance •• Stratton P, Berkley K. Chronic pelvic pain and endometriosis: translational evidence of the relationship and implications. Hum Reprod Update 2010. This is an excellent review that endorses increasing the emphasis on considering the pain mechanisms associated with endometriosis. •• Vercellini P, Crosignani G, Abbiati A, Somigliana E, Vigano P, Fedele L. The effect of surgery for symptomatic endoometriosis:the other side of the story. Hum Reprod Update 2009;15(2):177–88. This is an interesting paper that raises legitimate concerns regarding the limitations of surgery for pain associated with endometriosis. Ferrero S, Remorgida V, Venturini PL. Endometriosis. Clinical Evidence. 2010;8(802):1–27. •• Kuner R. Central mechanisms of pathological pain. Nature Medicine 2010;16(11):1258–66. 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