ReviewJournal of midwifery & women's health2023
Evaluation and Treatment of Vulvodynia: State of the Science.
Review in Journal of midwifery & women's health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 52 citations in OpenAlex.
- The clinical value of EMG and SSEP in diagnosing chronic pelvic pain syndrome; a systematic review.Pain practice : the official journal of World Institute of Pain · 2025Pooled it
- Long-lasting effect of penetrating acupuncture among responders: Double-blind RCT of acupuncture for vulvodynia.The journal of pain · 2026Trial
- Comorbid Conditions of Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes and Vulvodynia: A Latent Class Analysis.Pain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management Nurses · 2026Article
- Effectiveness and Tolerability of Topical Amitriptyline 10% Plus Lidocaine 2% Gel in Adults With Post-Traumatic Trigeminal Neuropathic Pain: A Real-World Evidence Study.Journal of oral rehabilitation · 2026Observational
- Awareness of Evidence-Based Treatments Among Women with Dyspareunia: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Comprehensive Evaluation of a Mucoadhesive Self-Emulsifying Anhydrous Base for Vaginal Drug Delivery.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Idiopathic vulvodynia - a psychosomatic disease? A cross-sectional single-center study.BMC women's health · 2026Article
- Vulvodynia (chronic vulval pain).BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2026Article
- Sensory Processing Sensitivity and Maladaptive Personality Traits in Chronic Pain Conditions: A Network Analysis Perspective.Pain research & management · 2026Article
- Vulvodynia and Chronic Vulvar Pain: Influencing Factors and Long-Term Success After Therapeutic Local Anesthesia (TLA).Pain and therapy · 2025Article
- Psychological, Relational, and Fertility-Related Characteristics of Italian Women with Vulvodynia: A Comparative Study with Controls.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Treatment Strategies for Painful Pelvic Floor Conditions: A Focus on the Potential Benefits of Cannabidiol.Biomolecules · 2024Review
- Review
- Clinical Evidence Regarding Spermidine-Hyaluronate Gel as a Novel Therapeutic Strategy in Vestibulodynia Management.Pharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Article
- Genital Pain and the Spectrum of Bladder-Related Symptoms: Findings from the Prevention of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms Research Consortium RISE FOR HEALTH Study, USA.International urogynecology journal · 2024Article
- Effectiveness of Combination of Tibolone andNutrients · 2024Article
- Botulinum toxin in the rehabilitation of painful syndromes: multiperspective literature analysis, lexical analysis and systematic review of randomized controlled trials.European journal of translational myology · 2024Article
- Vulvodynia - A contemporary understanding and practical approach in primary care settings.Malaysian family physician : the official journal of the Academy of Family Physicians of Malaysia · 2024Review
- Physical Modalities for the Treatment of Localized Provoked Vulvodynia: A Scoping Review of the Literature from 2010 to 2023.International journal of women's health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Vulvodynia affects 7% of American women, yet clinicians often lack awareness of its presentation. It is underdiagnosed and often misdiagnosed as vaginitis. The etiology of vulvodynia remains unknown, making it difficult to identify or develop effective treatment methods. The purpose of this article is to (1) review the presentation and evaluation of vulvodynia, (2) review the research on vulvodynia treatments, and (3) aid the clinician in the selection of vulvodynia treatment methods. The level of evidence to support vulvodynia treatment varies from case series to randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Oral desipramine with 5% lidocaine cream, intravaginal diazepam tablets with intravaginal transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS), botulinum toxin type A 50 units, enoxaparin sodium subcutaneous injections, intravaginal TENS (as a single therapy), multimodal physical therapy, overnight 5% lidocaine ointment, and acupuncture had the highest level of evidence with at least one RCT or comparative effectiveness trial. Pre to posttest reduction in vulvar pain and/or dyspareunia in non-RCT studies included studies of gabapentin cream, amitriptyline cream, amitriptyline with baclofen cream, up to 6 weeks' oral itraconazole therapy, multimodal physical therapy, vaginal dilators, electromyography biofeedback, hypnotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, cold knife vestibulectomy, and laser therapy. There is a lack of rigorous RCTs with large sample sizes for the treatment of vulvodynia, rendering it difficult to determine efficacy of most treatment methods. Clinicians will be guided in the selection of best treatments for vulvodynia that have the highest level of evidence and are least invasive.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.