Table 1.
Demographic, medical history, pain, and psychological characteristics of women with vulvar vestibulitis syndrome using conventional classification schemaa
| Primary vestibulitis | Secondary vestibulitis | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | No. | P valuec | |||
| Demographics and medical history | |||||
| Age, y | 38 | 29.0 (6.1) | 71 | 32.1 (7.1) | 0.027 |
| Duration intercourse pain, y | 38 | 3.1 (2.4) | 70 | 3.3 (2.2) | 0.718 |
| Prior visits | 33 | 3.7 (3.0) | 56 | 2.4 (1.7) | 0.023 |
| White, % | 38 | 92.1 | 71 | 91.5 | 1.000 |
| College educated, % | 36 | 88.9 | 63 | 93.6 | 0.457 |
| Married, % | 38 | 65.8 | 71 | 80.3 | 0.108 |
| Nulliparous, % | 38 | 94.7 | 71 | 62.0 | 0.0002 |
| Self-reported pain and psychological characteristics | |||||
| Average intercourse pain | 34 | 62.7 (4.9)b | 69 | 54.4 (3.4)b | 0.173 |
| Highest intercourse pain | 34 | 81.8 (4.0)b | 69 | 73.4 (2.8)b | 0.091 |
| Lowest intercourse pain | 34 | 40.3 (5.2)b | 69 | 34.3 (3.6)b | 0.342 |
| Verbal descriptors: intercourse pain | |||||
| Intensity | 33 | 36.2 (3.2)b | 67 | 33.1 (2.2)b | 0.427 |
| Unpleasantness | 33 | 15.6 (1.6)b | 69 | 13.9 (1.1)b | 0.379 |
| State anxiety (STAI-S) | 38 | 43.0 (2.0)b | 71 | 38.5 (1.4)b | 0.069 |
| Trait anxiety (STAI-T) | 38 | 45.4 (1.8)b | 71 | 40.8 (1.3)b | 0.049 |
| Somatization (PILL) | 38 | 124.6 (4.2)b | 71 | 110.4 (3.0)b | 0.007 |
| Psychological distress (BSI-GSI) | 38 | 63.3 (1.4)b | 71 | 59.2 (1.0)b | 0.022 |
Abbreviations: STAI-S, state anxiety inventory; STAI-T, trait anxiety inventory; PILL, Pennebaker Inventory of Limbic Languidness; BSI-GSI, Brief Symptom Inventory, Global Severity Index.
a
Values are given as mean (SD)
b
mean (SE), or percentage.
c
Two-sample t tests were used for age, number of prior doctors, and duration of pain. Fisher exact tests were used for race, education, marital status, and parity. For all pain and psychological characteristics, analysis of covariance was used controlling for age.