Chronic pelvic pain can be a disabling, chronic, persistent pain, within the pelvis in women. Relatively common, chronic pelvic pain is associated with comorbidities such as irritable bowel syndrome, major depressive disorder, or pelvic inflammatory syndrome. One in seven women in the United States is affected.
It usually is not possible to identify a single etiology or definitive cure for chronic pelvic pain. In at least one-half of cases, there are one or more associated entities, such as irritable bowel syndrome, interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome, endometriosis, or pelvic adhesions.
