[Management of dysmenorrhea]. / Prise en charge des dysménorrhées.

Dysmenorrhea is one of the most common reasons for consultation in gynecology. The social and economic burdens are important. Dysmenorrhea may therefore be considered as a major public health issue. Its management is not yet optimal as dysmenorrhea still affects the quality of life of many patients. Primary dysmenorrhea, with no underlying organic cause, results from myometrial hyper contractility, arteriolar vasoconstriction, and tissue hypoxia. Secondary dysmenorrhea may involve the pathophysiological mechanisms of primary dysmenorrhea, but is mainly the expression of an underlying gynecological pathology. Although the pathophysiology of primary dysmenorrhea is well established, studies are now focusing on treatments to improve the management of these patients, who are often young. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and oral contraception remain the recommended firstline drugs, but their effectiveness can be enhanced by complementary therapy such as local heat application or regular exercise. Studies on other unconventional complementary therapies, such as ginger consumption, are very encouraging and need to be reinforced to incorporate recommendations for the management of primary dysmenorrhea.

Les dysménorrhées représentent un des motifs de consultation les plus fréquents en gynécologie. Les répercussions sociales et économiques qu'elles engendrent en font un phénomène de santé publique. Leur prise en charge n'est pas encore optimale et les dysménorrhées altèrent toujours la qualité de vie de nombreuses patientes. Les dysménorrhées primaires, sans cause organique sous-jacente, sont le résultat d'une hyper contractilité myométriale, d'une vasoconstriction artériolaire et d'une hypoxie tissulaire. Les dysménorrhées secondaires peuvent faire intervenir les mécanismes physiopathologiques des dysménorrhées primaires mais sont surtout l'expression d'une pathologie gynécologique sous-jacente. Si la physiopathologie des dysménorrhées primaires est de mieux en mieux connue, les études s'intéressent à présent aux options thérapeutiques pour améliorer la prise en charge de ces patientes souvent jeunes. Les antiinflammatoires non stéroïdiens et la contraception orale restent les molécules recommandées en première intention mais leur efficacité peut être potentialisée par des traitements complémentaires comme l'application locale de chaleur ou la pratique régulière d'exercices physiques. Des premiers résultats concernant d'autres thérapies complémentaires non conventionnelles, comme la consommation de gingembre, sont très encourageants et doivent être renforcés pour intégrer les recommandations de la prise en charge des dysménorrhées primaires.

Primary mammary tuberculosis presenting as a voluminous abscess.

We present a case of primary mammary tuberculosis (MT), an extremely uncommon pathology, revealed by a voluminous tubercular abscess mimicking a recurrent pyogenic abscess. It was correctly diagnosed after a while because of partial response to antibiotics with a disappearance of the diffuse inflammatory components explained by the effect held concurrently by some antibiotic on a probable staphylococcic superinfection and its bactericidal effect against BK. This is the most common presentation of the mammary forms of the MT and the diagnosis particularly makes sense in this case matching several risk factors: female gender, lactation, young age, and origin from an endemic area. Furthermore the persistence of an abscess after a well driven medical treatment should always make search the presence of BK.

[Anti-HPV vaccination against cervical cancer]. / La vaccination anti-HPV contre le cancer du col utérin.

The aim of this review is to present a new light about the HPV infections, their spontaneous evolutions, and their consequences on the transformation of the target tissues. It enlightens the need for vaccination both as a preventive tool and therapeutic agent and the progresses reached so far. HPV infection is often transient and spontaneously reversible. HR HPV persistence is the major cause of cancerous transformation of several tissues. Preventive vaccination has already demonstrated a remarkable efficiency against the development of risk HPV ano-genital infections. Therapeutic vaccination is now also developed to cure the pre existing lesions. Some new screening protocol can be derived from these experiments. Both preventive and therapeutic HPV vaccinations will probably change within the next few years our approach for the screening and therapy of HPV related diseases. Mass vaccination of adolescent female should lower the frequency of these very frequently lethal affections.

[Which contraception in 2004?]. / Quelle contraception en 2004?

The part of the hormonal contraception in Belgium is important. The mode of administration has diversified during these last years. Indeed, in order to prevent spotting and breakthrough bleeding sometimes associated with low dosage pill, trans mucosa as well as trans cutaneous hormone administrations are interesting developments. The use of these "non oral" administrations also aim at reducing the risk of forgetting the contraceptive pill which is, together with the leave of the method for intolerance the major cause of unplanned pregnancies in young women.

Preferential infiltration of large bowel endometriosis along the nerves of the colon.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the mode and the extent of infiltration of endometriotic lesions in the large bowel. METHODS: In 31 patients undergoing large bowel resection for severe deep-infiltrating endometriosis of the sigmoid and rectum with severe digestive symptoms, we performed a prospective morphological, histological and immunohistological study (using the monoclonal antibodies S100 for the detection of the nerves and CD10 for the detection of the endometriotic stromal cells) on the large bowel resection specimen. The evaluation of invasion of the large bowel by endometriosis was performed by studying the presence, localization and mean number of lesions in the different layers of the colon, the relationship between endometriosis and the nerves of the colon, the nerve density in the respective layers of the large bowel and the presence of endometriosis on the resection margins. RESULTS: The most richly innervated layers of the large bowel are the most intensely involved by endometriosis. We found that 53 +/- 15% of endometriotic lesions were in direct contact the nerves of the colon by means of perineurial or endoneurial invasion. The mean largest diameter of the lesion does not seem to be correlated with the depth of infiltration. The margins were positive in 9.7% of cases. In cases of positive margins, the endometriotic lesions were in close histological relationship with the nerves. CONCLUSIONS: There is a close histological relationship between endometriotic lesions of the large bowel and the nerves of the large bowel wall. Endometriotic lesions seem to infiltrate the large bowel wall preferentially along the nerves, even at distance from the palpated lesion, while the mucosa is rarely and only focally involved.

Cervical response to vaccination against HPV16 E7 in case of severe dysplasia.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the tolerance to vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV)16 E7 (in SB adjuvant ASO2B) and its histological and immunohistological effects on HPV16 associated high-grade cervical dysplasias associated with HPV16. STUDY DESIGN: Five patients with histologically demonstrated severe cervical dysplasia (CIN3) HPV16 positive were injected three times before conization was performed 2 months after the first injection. We studied cytological, histological, proliferative pattern and immune profile before and after vaccination. The slides were compared with those obtained from non-injected patients. RESULTS: The injections were well tolerated and the specimens displayed a limited regression of the lesions. Nevertheless, massive CD4 and CD8 T cell lymphocytic infiltration was noticed after vaccination. DISCUSSION: We conclude that the vaccination we used provides an obvious immune histological reaction in the HPV infected cervix and that the 2 months delay before the final step (conization) is done is probably too short.

[Embolization of uterine fibroids]. / Embolisation des fibromyomes utérins.

Uterine artery embolization (UAE) for symptomatic leiomyomas is a new attractive treatment in patients who don't desire pregnancy and for which conventional therapy has failed. Uterine fibroid embolization can also be considered for patients who desire pregnancy when myomectomy is technically difficult or impossible and in case of recurrence after myomectomy. 90% improvements are commonly reported in abnormal bleeding, pelvic pains, and in bulk-related symptoms. Although numerous pregnancies have been reported after UAE, the fertility rate after UAE remains to be compared to myomectomy. Absolute contra-indications are pregnancy, endometrial carcinoma, gynaecologic infections, adnexal masses, and rapid growth of uterine leiomyomas (considered as a significant sign of sarcoma). Besides procedure related risks of angiography some specific complications are reported: deep pelvic vein thrombosis with exceptional pulmonary embolus, vaginal discharges with sometime transcervical expulsion of fibroid (5%), transient or permanent amenorrhea (4-5%) and extensive necrosis (1-2%) with possible perforation and infection. A hysterectomy is needed to manage this complication in 0.9 to 0.3% of case. The mortality rate of embolisation is evaluated to 1/3.000 against 6/10.000 for the hysterectomy. UAE is proposed as a less invasive alternative to hysterectomy and myomectomy for the treatment of symptomatic leiomyomas. This technique allows reducing the hospital stay, the convalescence period, the morbidity and the mortality rate compared to conventional surgical treatment.