OBJECTIVE: To compare the incidence of sexual and/or physical
abuse in women with vulvodynia (chronic, burning vulvar pain in the
absence of clear medical findings) as compared to women with chronic
vulvar symptoms due to specific, objective vulvar disease and with
women from a general dermatology practice. STUDY DESIGN: An invitation
to participate in this questionnaire study was sent to 300 women over
18 years of age from a vulvo-vaginal clinic and 280 women from a
general dermatology practice. These questionnaires asked for basic
demographic information as well as information on childhood sexual
experiences and physical abuse. RESULTS: Questionnaires from 89
patients with vulvodynia, 65 patients with chronic vulvar symptoms due
to specific, objective vulvar disease and 166 patients from a general
dermatology practice were examined. There were no differences as to
the incidence of childhood sexual or physical abuse between patients
with vulvodynia and either those with general dermatology complaints
or those with chronic vulvar symptoms due to objective
disease. CONCLUSION: There is no evidence from these data that women
with vulvodynia experience a higher incidence of sexual or physical
abuse during childhood as compared to women in a general dermatology
office or women with chronic vulvar symptoms from specific, observable
pathology.