Background
Chronic pelvic pain is a frustrating condition for many women with endometriosis considered the main cause with a prevalence of 70-90%. A number of recent studies have found that bladder pain syndrome is also an important differential diagnosis to consider and have also reported the high prevalence of having concomitant bladder pain syndrome and endometriosis. (1,2) Limited data exists however on the symptom outcomes of women who undergo laparoscopic treatment of endometriosis particularly relating to bladder symptoms.
Objective
To investigate the effect of surgical treatment of endometriosis on bladder pain syndrome and chronic pelvic pain symptoms at 12months post laparoscopy. The secondary outcomes reviewed include:
Method
A prospective cohort study was performed. Women scheduled for laparoscopy for investigation of chronic pelvic pain who met the inclusion criteria were recruited by medical staff. A pre-operative questionnaire was completed and the operation findings were collected. At three, six and twelve months post laparoscopy a repeat symptom questionnaire was sent to participants. The data from all sources was collected and analysed.
Results
A total of 205 patients were recruited between September 2013 and May 2016, with 47 being excluded based on the exclusion criteria. A total of 158 women were included in the survey with 74, 12 month surveys returned. The results of both the primary and secondary outcomes will be included in the presentation at the AGES ASM.
Conclusion
This study is a continuation from the prospective study by Cheng et el in 2011 which highlighted the importance of not only considering bladder pain syndrome as a significant cause of chronic pelvic pain but also the high prevalence of endometriosis in women who meet the criteria for bladder pain syndrome. The findings of this research will be presented at the AGES ASM with the objective of providing further knowledge on the symptom outcomes of women with chronic pelvic pain who undergo laparoscopy.
This research received an AGES Grant in 2016.