Grant: Catalyst Grant: Patient-Oriented Research

Painful sex affects 5-15% of women. Traditionally, the medical field classifies this pain into "superficial" (at the opening of the vagina) and "deep" (with deep penetration). However, it is unknown how well this traditional classification corresponds to the experiences of patients who have pain with sexual activity. Moreover, in a recent interview based study, we found that patients' descriptions of painful sex are much more complex, and extend beyond the traditional classification. In this proposal, we will begin development of a patient reported outcome measure for painful sex, where we engage and partner with patients for the development of a questionnaire that more accurately assesses this pain in women. This tool will be useful for the assessment of pain with sex by clinicians, and also for future research studies in order to more precisely measure changes in pain when investigating new treatments for this common pain.