Characterization and Prevalence of Female Pelvic Pain in a General Outpatient Urology Population.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To assess the character and prevalence of female pelvic pain in a general urology population presenting for evaluation of unrelated non-painful complaints. METHODS: This is an IRB-approved, prospective, cross-sectional survey-based assessment of pelvic pain in a general cohort of female patients presenting to a urology clinic over a 10-month period (7/2018-5/2019). Patients presenting specifically for acute painful complaints (eg, kidney stones) were excluded. Participating patients completed an original 22-item survey with questions pertaining to pelvic pain. Specific focus was placed on pain characteristics, including location, quality, frequency, exacerbating factors, and severity. Descriptive analysis, pain mapping, and plotting analyses were performed to assess pain patterns. RESULTS: A total of 181 women (mean age 56 years) completed the survey. Overall, 75 (41%) women reported pelvic pain. Two-thirds reported experiencing pain "often" to "always" over the preceding month. Patients described a significant variety of pain locations and qualities. The most common sites of pain were lower back (73%) and bladder (72%), while "dull/aching" was the most common pain quality. A majority (84%) of patients had multiple concurrent pain locations, with 40 unique pain location combinations being reported. Similarly, 13 and 10 unique combinations were seen with pain quality and eliciting activity, respectively. CONCLUSION: A significant percentage of women presenting to a general urology clinic experience pelvic pain. There was wide variety of pain characteristics and unique patterns. Further research is needed to comprehensively assess pain characteristics and develop related diagnostic pathways.