Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

The clitoris may be the most important anatomical structure for sexual arousal and orgasm in individuals with vulvas; however, research on clitorodynia, or chronic clitoral pain, remains a critical gap in the literature on chronic pelvic pain, resulting in chronic clitoral pain being underdiagnosed and undertreated within the healthcare field. There is a need for a greater understanding of the characteristics of clitorodynia and its impacts on psychosocial well-being and healthcare experience. Additionally, the limited literature on clitorodynia has exclusively considered heterosexual, cisgender women, neglecting the healthcare needs of sexual and gender minority individuals. The proposed study aims to fill these gaps by investigating the characteristics of clitorodynia and its impacts on psychosocial well-being and health care experience in people of all sexual identities (e.g., gay, lesbian, queer, bisexual, heterosexual) and genders (e.g., trans, non-binary, genderqueer, cisgender). Utilizing online-based sampling and recruitment methods, a longitudinal online survey will be administered to adults of all sexual identities and genders. Participants will be asked about sociodemographic variables, pain characteristics, psychosocial factors, and healthcare variables. The proposed study will help create a more nuanced understanding of the experience of chronic clitoral pain.