Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and interstitial cystitis: Are they related?

Interstitial cystitis and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome are clinical syndromes characterized by pelvic pain with or without voiding symptoms such as urgency and frequency. There are many similarities in their epidemiology, adverse effect on quality of life, etiology/pathophysiology, natural history, and response to similar treatments. However, overlapping clinical definitions and similar entrance criteria for large-scale cohort studies make comparisons problematic. Newer efforts to classify pelvic pain syndromes should help in our recognition that interstitial cystitis and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome likely are not organ-specific syndromes but urogenital manifestations of regional or systemic abnormalities.     

Perception of chronic pelvic pain in women: predictors and clinical implications

Pain is a complex subjective experience, associated with neurovegetative, affective and cognitive rapid changes. Biological, psychosocial and contextual factors may contribute. Chronic inflammation, of whatever cause, is the leading contributor to chronic pain. The mast cell directs both the inflammatory process and the shift to chronic pain, mediating through the production of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) and other neurotrophic molecules. Women, in the fertile age, are biologically more vulnerable to chronic inflammation, as fluctuations of estrogens are agonist factors of mast cells degranulation, mostly in the premenstrual phase. Pain is defined as "nociceptive" when it indicates an ongoing damage; "neuropathic" when it becomes a disease per se. Chronic Pelvic Pain (CPP) indicates an invalidating, persistent or recurrent pelvic pain, persisting for more than 6 months. CPP is the main complaint of 10-15% of gynaecologic consultations, leading to 40% of diagnostic laparoscopies and 15% of hysterectomies. Comorbidity, i.e. the coexistence of pathologies and painful syndromes in different pelvic organs, is another common feature. Cystitis, vulvar vestibulitis, endometriosis, irritable bowel syndrome all play an important role and contribute to identifying the hyperactive mast cell and related chronic inflammation as the common pathophysiologic factor. The paper reviews nociception characteristics, the emerging role of mast cells, the pathophysiology of comorbidity, biological, psychosexual and contextual predictors, and stresses the need to move from a "hyperspecialistic" perspective to a multisystemic reading of CPP, with special attention to the urologic perspective.     

Functional anorectal and pelvic pain

Functional anorectal and pelvic pain syndromes represent a diverse group of disorders that affect the quality of life and about which many physicians possess little understanding. Nongynecologic causes include levator ani syndrome, proctalgia fugax, and coccygodnia, which can often be distinguished by careful history and physical examination. In women, chronic pelvic pain may arise from the uterus, cervix, ovaries, or from endometriosis and pelvic adhesions. This article reviews these diverse disorders and the approach to diagnosis and management.     

Pelvic disorders in women: chronic pelvic pain and vulvodynia

Chronic pelvic pain and vulvodynia are frustrating pelvic disorders seen in young adult women. In the medical literature, these two conditions are linked together under the category of "chronic pelvic pain syndromes." Underlying pathophysiology is not well understood, and relatively scant research is available on successful treatment options. Patients often seek the help of specialists who provide nonsurgical treatments for incontinence and related pelvic disorders. This article provides an overview of the clinical presentation of both chronic pelvic pain and vulvodynia. Specific evaluation techniques, including abdominal, pelvic, bimanual rectal-vaginal, and neurologic examinations, are described. Several practical treatments, such as dietary interventions, vitamin supplementation, muscle relaxation training, biofeedback therapy, and electrical stimulation are discussed as options in a private practice setting.     

Update on interstitial cystitis: Still a bladder disease?

A recent study showed that 11 syndromes preceded interstitial cystitis (IC) in significantly more patients with the disease than controls: chronic pelvic pain, vulvodynia, irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, depression, panic disorder, sicca syndrome, asthma, migraine, and allergies. Many are known as functional somatic syndromes, appeared in clusters in the same patient, and had prevalences similar to those reported in established IC patients. These findings generated hypotheses that there are common risk factors for IC and these syndromes, that the syndromes themselves are risk factors for IC, and that IC and the syndromes are of the same pathophysiology. The latter is perhaps the most interesting and would imply that IC is a local manifestation of a systemic disease in some patients. Additionally, studies of established IC patients showed overlap of symptoms of IC with symptoms consistent with vulvodynia, urethral syndrome, overactive bladder, benign prostatic hyperplasia, and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome. These findings indicate lack of specificity of these symptom indices and raise profound questions about disease definition.     

Frequency of Mastalgia Among Women Veterans

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and frequency of mastalgia and its association with psychiatric conditions and unexplained pain syndromes.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Cross-sectional mailed survey completed by 1,219 female veterans enrolled at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System in 1998.
MEASUREMENTS: Breast pain in the past year, unrelated to pregnancy, was categorized as infrequent (≤monthly) or frequent (≥weekly) mastalgia. Surveys assessed posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, panic disorder, and alcohol misuse with validated screening tests, as well as self-reported past-year chronic pelvic pain, fibromyalgia, and irritable bowel syndrome.
RESULTS: The response rate was 63%. Fifty-five percent of the respondents reported past-year mastalgia. Of these, 15% reported frequent mastalgia. Compared to women without mastalgia, women reporting frequent mastalgia were more likely to screen positive for PTSD (odds ratio [OR] 5.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.2 to 8.4), major depression (OR 4.2, 2.6 to 6.9), panic disorder (OR 7.1, 3.9 to 12.8), eating disorder (OR 2.6, 1.5 to 4.7), alcohol misuse (OR 1.8, 1.1 to 2.8), or domestic violence (OR 3.1, 1.9 to 5.0), and to report fibromyalgia (OR 3.9, 2.1 to 7.4), chronic pelvic pain (OR 5.4, 2.7 to 10.5), or irritable bowel syndrome (OR 2.8, 1.6 to 4.8). Women with infrequent mastalgia were also more likely than women without mastalgia to screen positive for PTSD, depression, or panic disorder, or report pelvic pain or irritable bowel syndrome, although associations were weaker than with frequent mastalgia.
CONCLUSIONS: Like other unexplained pain syndromes, frequent mastalgia is strongly associated with PTSD and other psychiatric conditions. Clinicians seeing patients with frequent mastalgia should inquire about anxiety, depression, alcohol misuse, and trauma history.     

Advanced therapy for prostatitis: Minimally invasive and invasive therapies

The clinical syndromes of chronic prostatitis range from well-defined chronic bacterial infections to poorly defined chronic pelvic pain syndrome, previously referred to as prostatodynia and abacterial prostatitis. Faced by the obscure nature of the disease, its protracted course, and the poor response to oral medication, urologists have considered alternative treatment options. This article reviews the indications and outcomes of minimally invasive and invasive therapies for chronic prostatitis syndromes and discusses their potential use and benefits.     

Complications of Chronic Prostatitis

Chronic prostatitis (CP) is a pelvic condition in men that needs to be distinguished from other forms of prostatitis, such as acute and chronic bacterial prostatitis. CP is characterized by pelvic or perineal pain lasting longer than 3 months without evidence of urinary tract infection. Symptoms may wax and wane and pain may radiate to the back and perineum, causing discomfort while sitting. Dysuria, frequency, urgency, arthralgia, myalgia, unexplained fatigue, abdominal pain, and burning sensation in the penis may be present. Post-ejaculatory pain, mediated by nerves and muscles, is a hallmark of the condition and serves to distinguish CP/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) patients from men with benign prostatic hyperplasia and healthy men. Some patients report low libido, sexual dysfunction, and erectile difficulties. The symptoms of CP/CPPS appear to result from interplay between psychological factors and dysfunction in the immune, neurological, and endocrine systems. Some researchers have suggested that CPPS is a form of painful bladder syndrome/interstitial cystitis (PBS/IC). Therapies shown to be effective in treating IC/PBS (eg, quercetin) have shown some efficacy in CP/CPPS. Recent research has focused on genomic and proteomic aspects of the related conditions. There are no definitive diagnostic tests for CP/CPPS. This is a poorly understood disorder, even though it accounts for 90% to 95% of prostatitis diagnoses. Its peak incidence is in men 35 to 45 years old. In 2007, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases began using the umbrella term urologic chronic pelvic pain syndromes to refer to pain syndromes associated with the bladder (eg, IC/PBS) and prostate gland (eg, CP/CPPS). The prognosis for CP/CPPS has improved greatly with the advent of multimodal treatment, including phytotherapy, pelvic nerve myofascial trigger point release, anxiety control, and chronic pain therapy.     

慢性胃炎与慢性咽炎并病的诊治体会──附112例临床分析

慢性胃炎和慢性咽炎都是常见多发病，治疗不易收效，而两者并病就更为棘手。本文作者根据整体观念和辨证论治的基本原则，结合症脉舌，对１２例慢性胃炎和慢性咽炎并病患者，分为肝胃阴虚、相火上炎等五个证型，以和胃降过、清咽润燥为基本治则，进行施治，收到了较好疗效，总有效率为９８．２２％。     

Chronic perineal pain: current pathophysiological aspects, diagnostic approaches and treatment

Chronic perineal pain is the anorectal and perineal pain without underlying organic disease, anorectal or endopelvic, which has been excluded by careful physical examination, radiological and endoscopic investigations. A variety of neuromuscular disorders of the pelvic floor lead to the different pathological conditions such as anorectal incontinence, urinary incontinence and constipation of obstructed defecation, sexual dysfunction and pain syndromes. The most common functional disorders of the pelvic floor muscles, accompanied by perineal pain are levator ani syndrome, proctalgia fugax, myofascial syndrome and coccygodynia. In the diagnosis of these syndromes, contributing to a thorough history, physical examination, selected specialized investigations and the exclusion of organic disease with proctalgia is carried out. Accurate diagnosis of the syndromes helps in choosing an appropriate treatment and in avoiding unnecessary and ineffective surgical procedures, which often are performed in an attempt to alleviate the patient's symptoms.     

Frequency of mastalgia among women veterans

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and frequency of mastalgia and its association with psychiatric conditions and unexplained pain syndromes. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Cross-sectional mailed survey completed by 1,219 female veterans enrolled at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System in 1998. MEASUREMENTS: Breast pain in the past year, unrelated to pregnancy, was categorized as infrequent (≤ monthly) or frequent (≥ weekly) mastalgia. Surveys assessed posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, panic disorder, and alcohol misuse with validated screening tests, as well as self-reported past-year chronic pelvic pain, fibromyalgia, and irritable bowel syndrome. RESULTS: The response rate was 63%. Fifty-five percent of the respondents reported past-year mastalgia. Of these, 15% reported frequent mastalgia. Compared to women without mastalgia, women reporting frequent mastalgia were more likely to screen positive for PTSD (odds ratio [OR] 5.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.2 to 8.4), major depression (OR 4.2, 2.6 to 6.9), panic disorder (OR 7.1, 3.9 to 12.8), eating disorder (OR 2.6, 1.5 to 4.7), alcohol misuse (OR 1.8, 1.1 to 2.8), or domestic violence (OR 3.1, 1.9 to 5.0), and to report fibromyalgia (OR 3.9, 2.1 to 7.4), chronic pelvic pain (OR 5.4, 2.7 to 10.5), or irritable bowel syndrome (OR 2.8, 1.6 to 4.8). Women with infrequent mastalgia were also more likely than women without mastalgia to screen positive for PTSD, depression, or panic disorder, or report pelvic pain or irritable bowel syndrome, although associations were weaker than with frequent mastalgia. CONCLUSIONS: Like other unexplained pain syndromes, frequent mastalgia is strongly associated with PTSD and other psychiatric conditions. Clinicians seeing patients with frequent mastalgia should inquire about anxiety, depression, alcohol misuse, and trauma history.     

Fibromyalgia and chronic widespread pain in autoimmune thyroid disease

Fibromyalgia and chronic widespread pain syndromes are among the commonest diseases seen in rheumatology practice. Despite advances in the management of these conditions, they remain significant causes of morbidity and disability. Autoimmune thyroid disease is the most prevalent autoimmune disorder, affecting about 10 % of the population, and is a recognized cause of fibromyalgia and chronic widespread pain. Recent reports are shedding light on the mechanisms of pain generation in autoimmune thyroid disease-associated pain syndromes including the role of inflammatory mediators, small-fiber polyneuropathy, and central sensitization. The gradual elucidation of these pain pathways is allowing the rational use of pharmacotherapy in the management of chronic widespread pain in autoimmune thyroid disease. This review looks at the current understanding of the prevalence of pain syndromes in autoimmune thyroid disease, their likely causes, present appreciation of the pathogenesis of chronic widespread pain, and how our knowledge can be used to find lasting and effective treatments for the pain syndromes associated with autoimmune thyroid disease.     

Systematic mechanism-orientated approach to chronic pancreatitis pain

Pain in chronic pancreatitis(CP) shows similarities with other visceral pain syndromes(i.e.,inflammatory bowel disease and esophagitis),which should thus be managed in a similar fashion.Typical causes of CP pain include increased intrapancreatic pressure,pancreatic inflammation and pancreatic/extrapancreatic complications.Unfortunately,CP pain continues to be a major clinical challenge.It is recognized that ongoing pain may induce altered central pain processing,e.g.,central sensitization or pro-nociceptive pain modulation.When this is present conventional pain treatment targeting the nociceptive focus,e.g.,opioid analgesia or surgical/endoscopic intervention,often fails even if technically successful.If central nervous system pain processing is altered,specific treatment targeting these changes should be instituted(e.g.,gabapentinoids,ketamine or tricyclic antidepressants).Suitable tools are now available to make altered central processing visible,including quantitative sensory testing,electroencephalograpy and(functional) magnetic resonance imaging.These techniques are potentially clinically useful diagnostic tools to analyze central pain processing and thus define optimum management approaches for pain in CP and other visceral pain syndromes.The present review proposes a systematic mechanism-orientated approach to pain management in CP based on a holistic view of the mechanisms involved.Future research should address the circumstances under which central nervous system pain processing changes in CP,and how this is influenced by ongoing nociceptive input and therapies.Thus we hope to predict which patients are at risk for developing chronic pain or not responding to therapy,leading to improved treatment of chronic pain in CP and other visceral pain disorders.     

Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms: Defining Syndromes in Urology

Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) comprise a complex network of interrelated symptoms affecting different stages of the micturition cycle. With the prevalence of LUTS steadily increasing, there is great emphasis on the need for appropriate diagnosis and treatment. The current classification of LUTS into various urologic syndromes is controversial and poses a diagnostic and treatment dilemma. In this review, we present a comprehensive overview of four frequently encountered syndromes associated with LUTS—overactive bladder, interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome, benign prostatic obstruction, and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome—and also discuss the current trend in the management of these symptoms and syndromes.     

Emerging Trends in Pain Medication Management: Back to the Future: A Focus on Ketamine

Providers face many challenges when faced with pain management. Pain is complex, difficult to understand and diagnose, and especially enigmatic to manage. The discovery of nonopioid agents for pain management has become particularly important considering the ongoing opioid epidemic. This review is focused on revisiting ketamine, an agent that has historically been used for anesthesia, in new ways to manage pain. Ketamine has unique pharmacologic properties that may prevent the development of pain as well as reduce chronic pain. This has led to the use of ketamine for perioperative analgesia as well as chronic pain syndromes. In select patients with pain refractory to other treatment modalities, ketamine may provide much needed relief.     

Latest developments in the assessment and management of chronic musculoskeletal pain syndromes in children

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: As many as 25% of new patients in pediatric rheumatology clinics present with idiopathic chronic pain and recent data suggest the prevalence of these conditions is increasing. Knowledge of the latest developments in assessment and treatment is critical for providing optimal clinical care. This review summarizes advances published in the past year forwarding our understanding of chronic musculoskeletal pain syndromes in children. RECENT FINDINGS: Research has recently focused on the impairment associated with chronic pain syndromes in children, issues impacting the diagnosis of these conditions, and the efficacy of pharmacological and psychosocial treatments. No diagnostic criteria have been developed for specific chronic pain syndromes in children; however, data from several studies substantiate the need for thorough assessment of the child and family in multiple domains. In addition, studies have expanded both pharmacologic and psychosocial treatment options for children with these syndromes. SUMMARY: Despite a growing body of research on chronic pain syndromes in children, there are no established standards of care. Data continues to support an interdisciplinary approach for effectively assessing and managing these conditions.     

The prevalence of musculoskeletal pain and fibromyalgia in patients hospitalized on internal medicine wards

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence of nonarticular pain complaints (chronic widespread pain, chronic localized pain, transient pain) and fibromyalgia in hospitalized patients and to study utilization patterns of health services associated with pain related problems. METHODS: Five hundred twenty-two patients hospitalized on internal medicine wards were enrolled. Data were collected with a questionnaire covering demographic background, information on pain and other symptoms, utilization of health services, and drug consumption. All subjects were classified into four pain groups: those with no pain, transient pain, chronic regional pain, and chronic widespread pain. Tenderness was assessed by thumb palpation, and patients were diagnosed as having fibromyalgia if they met the 1990 American College of Rheumatology criteria. RESULTS: Sixty-two percent of the patients reported pain; 36% reported chronic regional pain, 21% reported chronic widespread pain, and 5% reported transient pain. Fifteen percent of all patients had fibromyalgia, most of whom (91%) were women. The prevalence of chronic widespread pain and of fibromyalgia in women increased with age. Sleep problems, headache, and fatigue were highly prevalent, especially among those with chronic widespread pain. Patients with chronic widespread pain reported more visits to family physicians (6.2 visits per year) and more frequent use of drugs. They also were more frequently referred to rheumatologists, and they reported more hospitalizations. CONCLUSIONS: Pain syndromes and related symptoms are prevalent among hospitalized patients on the medicine wards. The internist taking care of these patients should be aware of the presence of these syndromes and realize that some of the reported symptoms are partly related to these (undiagnosed) pain syndromes rather than to the cause of hospitalization.     

Electrophysiology as a tool to unravel the origin of pancreatic pain

Intense abdominal pain is the most common symptom in chronic pancreatitis, but the underlying mechanisms are not completely understood and pain management remains a significant clinical challenge.The focus of pain origin in chronic pancreatitis traditionally has been on the pancreatic gland, assuming pain to originate in the pancreas or its surrounding organs. However, research in the last decade points to abnormal central nervous system pain processing.For this reason, electroencephalography has been receiving increasing attention. In contrast to imaging methods such as functional magnetic resonance and positron emission tomography, electroencephalogram has excellent temporal resolution making it possible to investigate central processing of pain on a millisecond time scale. Moreover, continuously advancing methodology made it possible to explore brain sources responsible for generation of evoked potentialsand hence to study brain reorganization due to pain in chronic pancreatitis. The aim of this review is to give an overview of the current methods and findings in electroencephalography as a tool to unravel the origin of pancreatic pain.     

Irritable bowel syndrome and chronic pelvic pain： A singular or two different clinical syndrome？

Irritable bowel syndrome （IBS） and chronic pelvic pain （CPP） are both somatoform disorders with a high prevalence within the population in general. The objective was to compare both entities, to find the differences and the similarities related to epidemiology and psychosocial aspects like stressful life events, physical and sexual abuse, illness behaviour and comorbidity. The technical literature was reviewed systematically from 1971 to 2006 and compared. According to literature, IBS and CPP seem to be one rather than two different entities with the same Iocalisation of pain. Both syndromes also are similar concerning prevalence, the coexistence of mental and somatoform disorders, the common history of sexual and physical abuse in the past and their health care utilization. It could be shown that there were many similarities between IBS and CPP. Nevertheless both are traded as different clinical pictures as far. Therefore it seems to be reasonable and necessary to generate a common diagnosis algorithm and to bring gynaecologists and gastroenterologists into dialogue.