To Evaluate if the Medication Gabapentin Lessens Vulvar Pain

Colleen Stockdale

Status

Terminated

Conditions

Vulvar Pain Symptoms

Vulvodynia (Chronic Vulvar Pain)

Treatments

Drug: Gabapentin

Drug: Placebo oral capsule

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT00390013

IRB 20060674

RR00059 (Other Identifier)

200606748 (Other Identifier)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this research study is to evaluate if the medication gabapentin lessens the vulvar pain some women experience.

Full description

There is not a "best" treatment plan for vulvar pain including vulvodynia (chronic vulvar pain) and vulvar vestibulitis syndrome (VVS, chronic vulvar pain localized to the vaginal opening). We propose that vulvodynia is a neuropathic pain (pain that effects the nervous system) as characterized by pain from stimuli that is not usually painful, stimuli that would not usually be painful causing significant pain, and burning pain. Gabapentin has been shown to be effective in treating chronic pain.

Enrollment

9 patients

Sex

Female

Ages

18 to 80 years old

Volunteers

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

All women, ages 18 years and older with the diagnosis of vulvodynia or VVS (by Friedrich's criteria), who present to the University of Iowa Vulvar Vaginal Disease Clinic.

Exclusion criteria

Vulvar Vaginal Disease clinic patients who are pregnant, less than 3 months postpartum, breast-feeding, non-English speaking, or have contraindication to use of gabapentin due to allergy or renal disease (serum creatinine level greater than 1.4).