2013/02/06 by Anthony Gyang, Melissa Hartman, Georgine Lamvu
Medicine · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Endometriosis Research and Treatment #Pregnancy-related medical research #Myofascial pain diagnosis and treatment
paper · doi:10.1097/aog.0b013e318283ffea
Ten percent of all gynecologic consultations are for chronic pelvic pain, and 20% of patients require a laparoscopy. Chronic pelvic pain affects 15% of all women annually in the United States, with medical costs and loss of productivity estimated at 2.8 billion and 15 billion per year, respectively. Chronic pelvic pain in women may have multifactorial etiology, but 22% have pain associated with musculoskeletal causes. Unfortunately, pelvic musculoskeletal dysfunction is not routinely evaluated as a cause of pelvic pain by gynecologists. A pelvic musculoskeletal examination is simple to perform, is not time-consuming, and is one of the most important components to investigate in all chronic pelvic pain patients. This article describes common musculoskeletal causes of chronic pelvic pain and explains how to perform a simple musculoskeletal examination that can be easily incorporated into the gynecologist physical examination.