Re: Oral contraceptives & Vestibulitis/Vestibulodynia (link from the NVA)

[Guest guest]

Has anyone found relieve from going off the pill? What has helped?

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> The common denominator in Oral Contraceptives is synthetic

Progestins (man made progesterone).  Interesting to read the link

between hormones and vulvar pain, particularly, vestibulitis (which

is also called vestibulodynia). 

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> I began taking the pill at 17 for Endometriosis.  It led to

localized vestibulodynia in me. 

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> Chelle

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> http://learn.nva.org/risk_factors_1.htm

>     Oral Contraceptives

>   The role that oral contraceptives (OC) may play in the

development of vulvodynia remains unclear. Some clinicians propose

that the use of OCs, particularly at an early age, may play a role in

the development of vulvodynia by down-regulating estrogen receptors

in the vulvovaginal tissue, thereby causing the vestibular epithelium

to become thin and fragile. In one study, quantitative sensory tests

were performed on the vestibular mucosa in 39 healthy women, 20 of

whom were using OCs and 19 of whom did not use OCs and had normal

menstrual periods. Significantly lower mechanical pain thresholds

were observed in the OC group, with the most sensitivity in the

posterior vestibule. This finding led to the conclusion that OCs may

induce increased

> sensitivity in the vestibular mucosa in healthy women, possibly

contributing to the development of VVS. (26)

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> Another study comparing 32 VVS patients and 17 controls from a

Swedish vulvar clinic found that, while the two groups did not differ

in age or age of first intercourse, VVS cases had used OCs for a

significantly longer period of time (3.06 years versus 1.92 years).

(17)  In another study, the medical records of 45 VVS patients from

an Oslo vulvar clinic were reviewed and compared to questionnaire

responses from 180 controls; after adjusting for age, there was no

difference in OC usage between patients and controls. (13) Another

study of 57 VVS patients and 173 controls found that women who had

used oral contraceptives before the age of 17 were nearly 11 times

more likely to develop VVS compared to women who had never used oral

> contraceptives. (16)  Finally, a study comparing 138 VVS patients

and 309 controls found that women who had used OCs were 6.66 times

more likely to develop VVS than women who had never used them; when

OCs were first used before age 16, the relative risk of developing

VVS reached 9.3 and increased with duration of OC use up to 2 to 4

years. (27)

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[Guest guest]

All the Docs here are trying to push Yaz on me to see if it helps

with the pain. Has BC helped anyone? Or just hurt? I was not on BC

before this mess. I am 38 and only briefly took the pill in my 20's

for less than a year. Metrogel and OTC yeast creme preceded my hell.

> >

> > The common denominator in Oral Contraceptives is synthetic

> Progestins (man made progesterone).  Interesting to read the link

> between hormones and vulvar pain, particularly, vestibulitis

(which

> is also called vestibulodynia). 

> >  

> > I began taking the pill at 17 for Endometriosis.  It led to

> localized vestibulodynia in me. 

> >

> > Chelle

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

Having been off the pill for about 3 years now, I feel like my

symptoms have possibly changed/gotten worse. I feel like maybe my

body was dependent on the " false " hormones from the pill, and now my

body is not compensating with natural hormone function. I'm making an

appointment today to speak with yet another gynecologist about hormone

testing. I have been seeing natropathic docs for the past 2 years,

but am getting frustrated as I've had very little improvement.

>

> Has anyone found relieve from going off the pill? What has helped?

>