Pain experience with outpatient hysteroscopy: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) affects women of all ages and is one of the most common reasons for referral to a gynaecological clinic. Operative hysteroscopic procedures allow for a see-and-treat approach to AUB, and these techniques have been shown to be feasible and acceptable in the outpatient setting. OBJECTIVE: To assess if there is an increase in pain scores for women who are undergoing an operative hysteroscopic procedure with Myosure LITE® (Hologic; mechanical hysteroscopic tissue removal system) compared to outpatient diagnostic hysteroscopy alone. STUDY DESIGN: A prospective cohort study was performed. All participants attending the outpatient hysteroscopy clinic at Mercy Hospital for Women completed a pre-and post-procedure questionnaire. This included a visual analogue scale (VAS) for any pre-existing pain, anticipated pain, and actual pain experienced during procedure. Factors influencing overall satisfaction and willingness to attend again were also assessed. Data was entered into RedCap® for analysis. A difference in VAS of 10 mm or more was considered clinically significant. An alpha of p < 0.05 was assigned for statistical significance. RESULTS: Between February 2020 and November 2022, 208 women underwent outpatient diagnostic hysteroscopy followed by an operative hysteroscopy with MyoSure®. To allow for standardisation of analgesia, only participants who had a cervical block before their Myosure® procedure were included for analysis (n = 111). There was statistical evidence (t(111) = 2.36, p = 0.02) of a lower mean VAS pain score for operative Myosure (36.5 mm, 95 % CI: 31.1-41.8 mm) compared to outpatient diagnostic hysteroscopy (44.1 mm, 95 % CI: 39.0-49.2 mm). The mean difference in VAS pain score was estimated as 7.7 mm (95 % CI: 1.2-14.1 mm) lower for Myosure compared to hysteroscopy. Given the threshold for clinical significance was considered as 10 mm difference in VAS, the variance in pain scores is under the likely clinically significant range. There was no significant difference in pain scores for diagnostic hysteroscopy with or without paracervical block (mean difference = 1.42; 95 % CI: -6.35 to 9.20). There was no association between pre-existing pain, and actual pain for hysteroscopy, or Myosure (p = 0.997 and p = 0.065 respectively). The anticipated pain score was weakly associated with actual pain during the operative Myosure procedure (p = 0.02), and with outpatient diagnostic hysteroscopy (p = 0.019). CONCLUSION: Outpatient hysteroscopy procedures are generally well tolerated. The pain experience with operative Myosure was less than that reported during the diagnostic hysteroscopy by the same patient although this is unlikely of clinical significance. Importantly, Myosure was not more painful than the initial diagnostic procedure, and most patients were satisfied with the outcome and would choose to have the procedure again in an outpatient setting. This is in keeping with other studies which have shown a high degree of patient tolerance and satisfaction with this approach.

Positron emission tomography in the evaluation of endometriosis: A systematic review.

Despite the profound impact of endometriosis worldwide, delays in diagnosis and suboptimal surveillance techniques are well-recognised issues. Case studies have reported incidental uptake of 18F-FDG PET tracer in endometriotic lesions. However, the utility of PET imaging as a non-invasive diagnostic tool for endometriosis is currently unclear. The purpose of this systematic review was to summarise the existing evidence and determine the value of available PET scanning techniques in the detection and monitoring of endometriosis. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, SCOPUS and Web of Science were searched from conception to 05/03/23. Eligible studies included participants with a history of known or suspected endometriosis who underwent a PET scan for any indication. All PET tracers and protocols were eligible. Outcomes included correlation of PET tracer uptake with the presence of endometriosis seen at laparoscopy or confirmed on histology, sensitivity of tracer uptake, specificity of tracer uptake, site of lesions with tracer uptake, stage of lesions with tracer uptake, SUVmax of endometriosis lesions and adverse reactions to PET imaging. The protocol for this review was registered with PROSPERO (ID: CRD42023405260). Eight studies describing 110 participants were eligible for inclusion. Six studies assessed 18F-FDG with combined PET-CT, one study assessed 18F-FDG PET alone, and the remaining study assessed PET-CT with an alternative tracer, 68Ga-DOTATATE. For 18F-FDG imaging, the correlation of PET avidity with lesions or sites of endometriosis ranged from 0-55 %. Pre-operative 68Ga-DOTATATE PET-CT detected endometriosis in 33 % of cases. All included studies were cohort studies, six were assessed to have low risk of bias, one with moderate risk and one with high risk of bias. Overall, 18F-FDG PET scanning does not appear to consistently identify endometriotic lesions, and therefore its reliability and usefulness in endometriosis diagnosis is limited. The utility of 68Ga-DOTATATE PET-CT remains uncertain. Findings are constrained by limited available evidence reporting outcomes of PET imaging for endometriosis. Other existing PET tracers with biological plausibility in the detection or monitoring of endometriosis warrant further investigation.

Multiple Case Study Exploring the Impact of Visitor Restrictions in Hospitals on Childbirth Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Objective: Childbirth is a life-changing experience for new mothers, birth partners, and families. The COVID-19 pandemic restricted laboring mothers' access to support in hospitals through visitor restrictions. The goal of this research was to describe childbirth support in hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A qualitative study using a multiple case study design describes childbirth support in hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic from the perspectives of the new mother, birth partner, and obstetric hospital staff, including doulas, nurses, and obstetric providers. The setting was a large metropolitan area in South Texas. Sixteen participants were interviewed including four new mothers, three birth partners, three doulas, three obstetric nurses, and three obstetric providers. Results: Themes that emerged from the data include: under a spotlight, unmet expectations, discovering serenity, and quality childbirth support. Conclusion: During the pandemic, new mothers and birth partners experienced fewer distractions, better communication with the hospital staff, and had better opportunities to bond with the newborn during labor and after birth, but did report missing the presence of their family and friends. Doulas, obstetric nurses, and obstetric providers found they were able to provide better quality and safer care to laboring mothers and birth partners.