Musculoskeletal Causes of Chronic Pelvic Pain What a Gynecologist Should Know Article

cited authors

  • Gyang, Anthony, Hartman, Melissa, Lamvu, Georgine

abstract

  • 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. (Obstet Gynecol 2013;121:645-50) DOI: http://10.1097/AOG.0b013e318283ffea

Publication Date

  • March 1, 2013

webpage

published in

category

start page

  • 645

end page

  • 650

volume

  • 121

issue

  • 3

WoS Citations

  • 34

WoS References

  • 25