Table 2.

Characteristics of studies containing any comparative data on vaginal dilation following radiotherapy

Author/date	Methods	Participants	Interventions	When was the intervention
Robinson 1999b	Randomised trial	32 women with stage 1 or 2 cervical or endometrial carcinoma who were treated with radiotherapy	Control arm: a clinical consultation and literature containing information on normal sexual responses, vaginal dryness, the use of lubricants, Kegel exercises, vaginal dilators and alternative positions for coitus, presumably with instruction to dilate the vagina after treatment Interventional arm: a clinical consultation and literature containing information on normal sexual responses, vaginal dryness, the use of lubricants, Kegel exercises, vaginal dilators and alternative positions for coitus presumably with instruction to dilate the vagina after treatment plus 2 separate 1.5-hour cycle education sessions guided by information motivation behavioural skills model (informing women how to use dilators, motivating them to use them and teaching them how to use them effectively)	The stent was given to women immediately after competition of treatment Women were assessed at 6 weeks after treatment and 3 monthly thereafter
Decruze 1999	Unmatched, unblinded, uncontrolled case series with historical controls	70 women treated by either external beam radiotherapy, vaginal caesium only or combination of intrauterine vaginal caesium and external beam radiotherapy	Retrospective review of stenosis 1 year after radiotherapy in women who had used the authors own design of vaginal stent compared to uncontrolled group who never used a vaginal stent	After completion of all treatment including intracavity radiotherapy
Bruner 1993	Cohort study	90 women treated with intra-cavity radiation implants with or without external beam radiotherapy and with or without radical or total abdominal hysterectomy for either cervical or uterine carcinomas (stages 1 to 3) consecutively from 1989 to 1992	Sexual intercourse frequency. These data have been requested from the authors but they have been unable to provide this	-
Sobotkowski 2006	Non-randomised comparison	31 women with advanced cervix cancer treated by radiotherapy and brachytherapy. Vaginal length measured before and after treatment	16 women were chosen to have mitomycin prophylaxis applied topically to the top of the vagina. Application of the drug took place 2 and 4 weeks after completion of radiotherapy by the use of a dry speculum and the application of a mitomycin soaked gauze placed in the vaginal vault for about 4 minutes	2 and 4 weeks after the completion of the radiotherapy