High Tone Pelvic Floor Dysfunction

December 5, 2017 updated by: Becky Lynn, MD, St. Louis University

Retrospective Chart Review to Investigate an Association Between Vulvovaginal Atrophy and High Tone Pelvic Floor Dysfunction (HTPFD)

Dyspareunia, or painful intercourse, is one of the most commonly reported complaints in postmenopausal women. One common cause of dyspareunia is vaginal atrophy (VVA), which occurs in >50% of postmenopausal women. At the time of menopause, a lack of estrogen thins the vaginal mucosa and lessons lubrication, making sex painful. Some women with vaginal atrophy will also have high tone pelvic floor dysfunction (HTPFD) (also known as levator spasm). Successful treatment of the sexual pain requires treatment of both vaginal atrophy and HTPFD.

How often vaginal atrophy and HTPFD coexist has not been studied. In fact, the prevalence of HTPFD is unknown. This is most likely due to the fact that many clinicians are unaware of its existence or how to diagnose or treat it. Also, sexual symptoms tend to be underreported due to embarrassment or hesitation to seek care. HTPFD frequently coexists with other conditions that cause pain like vaginal atrophy, endometriosis or interstitial cystitis. Treatment includes treating both conditions. If only one is treated, then sexual pain is likely to continue. There are several available treatments for HTPFD that have been studied including physical therapy, botox and intravaginal diazepam.

This is an area where clinicians may be under treating a condition and limiting the possibility of restoring normal sexual function to many women. Treating only vaginal atrophy without appropriate evaluation and treatment of HTPFD leaves a cohort of women still struggling with sexual pain. With a better understanding of the relationship between HTPFD and vaginal atrophy, the investigators hope to bring awareness concerning the importance of treating both in restoring normal sexual function.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This is a retrospective chart review that will be performed to identify all female patients in the electronic medical records with a diagnosis of vulvovaginal atrophy (VVA).

The records of these patients with VVA will be examined for demographics, symptoms, answers to standardized questionnaires ( e.g. Female Sexual Function Index - FSFI - that is routinely assessed during clinical evaluation), work-up, diagnosis, and/or treatment of high tone pelvic floor dysfunction (HTPFD). Symptoms of HTPFD include but are not limited to pelvic pressure or pain, and dyspareunia. These data will then undergo statistical analysis.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

80

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • Missouri
      • Saint Louis, Missouri, United States, 63117
        • St. Mary's Health Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 90 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

>/= 18 -90 years of age female any ethnic background

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • diagnosis of vulvovaginal atrophy (VVA)

Exclusion Criteria:

  • not meeting the inclusion criteria

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
vulvovaginal atrophy
Time Frame: 3 months
Charts reviewed for HTPFD
3 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Becky K Lynn, MD, St. Louis University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

January 31, 2017

Primary Completion (Actual)

February 1, 2017

Study Completion (Actual)

February 1, 2017

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

March 3, 2017

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 16, 2017

First Posted (Actual)

March 17, 2017

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

December 7, 2017

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 5, 2017

Last Verified

December 1, 2017

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 27975

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Vulvovaginal Atrophy

Clinical Trials on no intervention

Search Similar Trials