When I speak to pelvic pain patients – especially those with IC, I almost always advise them to get their hormones checked out properly. However, does this mean that the investigation should stop there? I think not. Not all pelvic pain patients are offered hormone testing and when they are, they are often told that their blood work is showing normal results. While most medical professionals feel that hormonal factors may be relevant in IC and related conditions, there is a lack of consensus as to which hormones, at which levels, may hinder or help. The same is true of other pelvic pain conditions like vulvodynia, lichen sclerosus and vaginitis. For some this is very helpful however, in others it actually worsens symptoms. Although there is no hard and fast rule that connects hormone levels to pelvic pain disorders, it is known that low oestrogen can increase propensity to urinary tract infections and women with interstitial cystitis are therefore often prescribed vaginal oestrogen cream.
Younger women often report that their symptoms change during the menstrual month and when my own PGAD was more of an issue, I certainly noticed that my cycle affected things – I still do sometimes.
When I speak to customers on the phone, a significant proportion of them tell me that their pelvic pain symptoms started with the onset of menopause, a pregnancy, or a hysterectomy.
