PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC PELVIC PAIN AND OR INFERTILITY - PSYCHOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES PRETREATMENT AND POSTTREATMENT

This study investigated the psychological differences between gynecolo gical clinic attenders with either pelvic pain or infertility, or with both pelvic pain and infertility both before and after laparoscopic i nvestigation with concurrent treatment. Given the differing meaning at tached to the procedure by these groups, it was hypothesized that infe rtility patients would be more anxious but with less evidence of psych opathology in comparison with the pain group prior to laparoscopic sur gery. Postsurgery and in the short term, pain reduction was expected t o be associated with decreased pathology for the pain group. Contrary to the hypotheses, pain patients obtained higher anxiety scores in com parison with the infertility group both pretreatment as well as post-t reatment. The latter group's scores were comparable to normative data. Other results were generally in line with the hypotheses, pain reduct ion for both pain groups being associated with a reduction in psychopa thology. Patients with pain plus infertility resembled pain patients a t pretreatment, while at post-treatment, they bore a closer resemblanc e to infertility patients in their psychological profile. This was des pite the fact that for both pain groups, pain relief was similar. This reinforces the notion that in the patient groups studied anxiety is a ssociated with pain rather than with infertility.