Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2012;34(1):11-15
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032012000100003
PURPOSE: The present study examined the relationship between some clinical variables and quality of life in a group of patients with endometriosis. METHODS: A total of 130 women seen at a multidisciplinary center specializing in gynecology endometriosis in 2008 participated in the study. This was a cross-sectional study conducted with a convenience sample. The diagnosis of endometriosis was performed by biopsy according to the criteria of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. The clinical and demographic data were collected from the patients' records. Pain intensity was assessed by a visual numerical scale (0-10), and data on the quality of life were collected using the SF-36. Data analysis consisted of descriptive and inferential statistical tests, Spearman correlation coefficient and Kruskal-Wallis test to compare scores between groups. Nonparametric tests were used for analysis because data were not normally distributed. RESULTS: The patients were 21 to 54 years of age [ or = 34, standard diversion (SD)=6.56], 87% had a university degree, and 75% were married. Seventeen percent reported cases of endometriosis in the family. The average time of onset of symptoms was 4.5 years (SD=6.6), 63% of patients were in stage 3 or 4 of endometriosis 36% of patients had severe or disabling dysmenorrhea and the average intensity of pain according to a visual numerical scale was of 5.6 (SD=3.5). Results suggest that the staging of the disease did not determine the intensity of pain. The time of onset of symptoms also showed no relationship to pain intensity and SF-36 scores. On the other hand, the intensity of pain was associated with lower scores on some scales of the SF-36. CONCLUSION: Patients with endometriosis had lower scores of quality of life than the general population and lower than those of some other diseases.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2011;33(6):303-309
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032011000600007
PURPOSE: Due to the scarce information available in Brazil in relation to the number of women who initiated the use of combined oral contraceptives and prematurely discontinued, the objective was to assess the reasons for discontinuation of the use of several combined oral contraceptives among Brazilian women living in urban areas. METHODS: A cross-sectional study with 400 gynecologists registered withy the Brazilian Federation of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Each physician interviewed 10 non-pregnant, not breastfeeding, not amenorrheic women aged 18 to 39 years who consulted requesting combined oral contraceptive (COC) with a questionnaire at the beginning of use and at six months later. The questionnaire included sociodemographic data, type of COC chosen or prescribed and reasons for discontinuation when it occurred during follow-up. The strategy of selection allowed the inclusion of women from different socioeconomic strata, however, only those attended at private or insurance offices. The sample size was estimated at 1,427 women. RESULTS: A total of 3,465 interviews were conducted at the first visit and 1,699 six months later. The women were 20 to 29 years old, 57.3% were single and an equal proportion of 45.0% attended high school or college. Most (60.7%) were nulligravidas and among those who had used some contraceptive before, 71.8% had used a COC. Among the more prescribed or chosen COC the most prevalent were monophasic with ethynil estradiol (20 µg) and regarding progestin the most prevalent was with gestodene (36.5%) followed by a COC with drosperinone (22.0%). At six months 63.5% still used COC. Among those who discontinued the main reasons were wishing to become pregnant (36.5%) and side effects (57.3%) and the most prevalent were headache (37.6%), weight gain (16.6%) and irregular bleeding (23.6%). CONCLUSIONS: The continuation rate of COC was low at six months and this study could contribute to a better counseling on the part of physicians of patients who initiate COC about side-events that are rare, minimal and temporary and about the benefits of COC use.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2011;33(4):182-187
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032011000400006
PURPOSE: to translate into Portuguese, culturally adapt and validate the Incontinence Severity Index (ISI) questionnaire. METHODS: two Brazilian translators carried out the translation of the ISI into Portuguese and a version was generated by consensus. This version was back-translated by two other native English speaking translators. The differences between versions were resolved and the version was pre-tested in a pilot study. One week later, the ISI was reapplied to complete the retest. The final version of the ISI was applied together with the one-hour pad test to women with stress urinary incontinence. For the validation of the ISI, the reliability (internal consistency and test-retest) and the construct were evaluated. RESULTS: the reliability of the instrument was tested using the Cronbach α coefficient, with a general result of 0.93, demonstrating excellent reliability and consistency of the instrument. The intraclass correlation coefficient and the standard errors of measurement were 0.96 and 0.43, respectively. The Pearson correlation revealed a strong positive correlation (r=0.72, p<0.0001) between the results of the ISI questionnaire and the one-hour pad test. CONCLUSION: the culturally adapted version of the ISI translated into Brazilian Portuguese presented satisfactory reliability and survey validity and was considered to be valid for the evaluation of the severity of urinary incontinence.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2010;32(6):273-278
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032010000600004
PURPOSE: to translate, culturally adapt and validate the questionnaire "International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Overactive Bladder" (ICIQ-OAB) for the Portuguese Language. METHODS: two Brazilian translators acquainted with the objectives of this research translated the ICIQ-OAB into Portuguese and both translations were back-translated by two other native English speaking translators. The differences between the versions were brought to agreement and pre-tested in a pilot study. The final version of the ICIQ-OAB was applied together with the previously translated and tested version of the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire - Short Form (ICIQ-SF) in 142 male and female patients with irritative urinary symptoms. For the validation of the ICIQ-OAB the following psychometric features were evaluated: reliability (internal consistency and test-retest) and validity of the survey. The retest was performed four weeks after the first interview. RESULTS: the reliability of the instrument was demonstrated through the Cronbach α Coefficient, with a general result of 0.7. The test-retest corroborated the stability of the instrument through the intraclass correlation coefficient and presented a result of 0.91 and 0.95 when compared to both the ICIQ-OAB and ICIQ-SF, respectively. When the instruments were compared by the Pearson correlation coefficient the result was 0.7 (p=0.0001), that confirms the validity of the study criterion. The concurrent validity was evaluated by the correlation between some clinical and sociodemographic variants and the ICIQ-OAB score. CONCLUSION: the culturally adapted version of the ICIQ-OAB translated into Brazilian Portuguese presented satisfactory reliability and survey validity and was considered valid for the evaluation of irritative urinary symptoms of Brazilian patients of both genders.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2010;32(5):234-240
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032010000500006
PURPOSE: to evaluate the effect of pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) on female sexual dysfunctions. METHODS: twenty-six women with a diagnosis of sexual dysfunction (sexual desire, arousal, orgasmic disorders and/or dyspareunia) were included in a clinical trial with a before/after approach . The assessment was carried out before, during (after five sessions) and at the end of the treatment (after ten sessions) by two-digit palpation (assessment of pelvic floor muscle, PFM, strength), intravaginal electromyography (EMG) (capture of PFM contraction amplitudes) and Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI, a questionnaire for the evaluation of sexual function). The women underwent PFMT in different positions for ten sessions (once or twice a week). For statistical analysis, absolute and relative frequencies were used for clinical characteristics and PFM strength. The Friedman test was used to compare the FSFI domain scores and EMG values, the Students t-test was used to determine the association between these values and the characteristics of the women, and the Wilcoxon test for percent modification of the EMG. The Mann-Whitney test permitted us to compare these values with clinical characteristics. The Spearman correlation test was used to correlate the EMG values with mean total score. Results were considered statistically significant if p<0.05. RESULTS: a significant improvement (p<0.0001) of FSFI scores was observed at the end of treatment compared to the values observed before and in the middle of treatment. Regarding the EMG, the amplitudes of tonic and phasic contractions increased significantly during treatment (p<0.0001). Pelvic floor strength increased, which 69% of the women presenting grade 4 or 5 at the end of treatment, with a total improvement of sexual complaints. CONCLUSIONS: the PFMT improved muscle strength and electromyography contraction amplitudes, with improved sexual function, indicating that this physiotherapy approach may be successfully used for the treatment of female sexual dysfunctions.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2010;32(2):72-76
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032010000200004
PURPOSE: to translate into Brazilian Portuguese and culturally adapt the Short Personal Experiences Questionnaire (SPEQ) to climacteric women. METHODS: the original English version from the University of Melbourne, Australia, was initially translated into Portuguese and back-translated into English. A sociocultural adaptation of vocabulary and linguistic constructions was performed to facilitate comprehension. The questionnaire was then pretested in successive stages in 50 women, until no doubts remained. The final version of the adapted instrument was self-responded by 378 Brazilian-born women, between 40 to 65 years old, with 11 years or more of schooling in a population-based study. The reliability (internal consistency as measured by Cronbach's alpha), the construct validity (correlation coefficients between the items comprising the SPEQ and selected variables) and the criterion validity (correlation coefficient between sexual dysfunction score and overall score of sexual life classification) were analyzed. RESULTS: one hundred and eight women answered all the questions of the SPEQ and were included in the study. Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) for all the nine SPEQ items ranged from 0.55 to 0.77 and the general alpha was 0.68. In the construct validity analysis, most of the correlation coefficients were significant (p<0.005). The criterion validity analysis showed significant correlation coefficients in most cases. CONCLUSIONS: following the adaptation process, the Portuguese version of the SPEQ was deemed useful and appropriate for collecting data on sexual function and dyspareunia in Brazilian women, aged 45 to 65 years, with at least 11 years of schooling.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2009;31(4):196-202
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032009000400007
PURPOSE: to evaluate the quality of life of post-menopause women, users and non-users of hormonal therapy (HT), in a Healthcare Unit in Franca, São Paulo, Brazil. METHODS: a clinical transversal study, carried out with 250 post-menopausal women, with ages from 45 to 70 years old, attended to in Healthcare Units, from September 2007 to August 2008. Participants were divided into two groups: HT users (n=70) and non-users (n=180). Women making continuous HT use for at least six months were considered as users. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics have been evaluated. Blatt-Kupperman's menopausal index has been applied to assess climacteric symptoms, and the Women's Health Questionnaire (WHQ), to assess their quality of life. Fisher's exact test or χ2 and Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis's tests have been used for the statistical analysis. RESULTS: no significant difference has been found in the comparison of groups, concerning age, menarche, menopause, parity and body mass index. It has been seen that 67.2% of the women were married, 83.2% had attended primary school and 53.2% were housewives, with no difference between the groups. HT users reported lower frequency of climacteric symptoms (BKMI) with moderate and marked intensity, as compared to non-users (p<0.001). Even though HT users presented lower average score in cognitive deficit (p<0.001), vasomotor symptoms (p=0.04), sleeping problems (p<0.001), attractiveness (p=0.02) from the WHQ, there has been no difference in the total score, as compared to non-users. CONCLUSIONS: post-menopausal women, HT users and non-users, admitted at Healthcare Units, have not presented differences in global quality of life.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2008;30(10):504-510
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032008001000005
PURPOSE: to translate from English into Portuguese, adapt culturally and validate the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). METHODS: knowing the objectives of this research, two Brazilian translators have prepared a version each from the FSFI into Portuguese. Both versions have then been retro-translated into English by two English translators. After harmonizing the differences, they have been pre-tested in a pilot study. The final versions from the FSFI and from another questionnaire, the Short-Form Health Survey, which had already been translated and published in Portuguese, have then been simultaneously administered to one hundred patients, to test the FSFI psychometric proprieties concerning reliability (internal consistency and testing-retesting) and construct validity. Retesting was done after four weeks from the first interview. RESULTS: the process of cultural adaptation has not altered the Portuguese version of the FSFI, as compared to the original. The FSFI standardized Cronbach alpha was 0.96, and the evaluation by domains has varied from 0.31 to 0.97. As a measure of test-retest confidentiality, it was applied the intra-class coefficient, which has been considered strong and identical (1.0). Pearson's correlation coefficient between the FSFI and the Short-Form Health Survey was positive, but weak in most of the interrelated domains, varying from 0.017 to 0.036. CONCLUSIONS: the FSFI English version has been translated into Portuguese and culturally adapted, being reliable to evaluate the sexual response of Brazilian women.