Australian and New Zealand journal of public health
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Aust N Z J Public Health · Aug 2004
Clinical TrialChronic pelvic pain in New Zealand: prevalence, pain severity, diagnoses and use of the health services.
Chronic pelvic pain (CPP) in women is often debilitating and isolating. Problems with diagnosis continue to make CPP one of the most perplexing conditions in gynaecology, and one of the most difficult to treat. ⋯ The three-month CPP prevalence rate was 25.4% (95% CI 22.8-27.9). Half of those women reporting CPP (47.7%) remained undiagnosed. The three-month prevalence of dysmenorrhoea was 55.2%, and dyspareunia 19.7%. Recent or past consulters of health services for CPP contained a higher proportion of women with a high pain burden than those not consulting health services. Only one-third of New Zealand women (34%) reported no form of chronic pelvic pain (i.e. no CPP, dysmenorrhoea or dyspareunia). These prevalence rates indicate that CPP should receive greater public education and clinical attention.