OBJECTIVES To explore the prevalence of orofacial pain (OFP) among patients with vulvar vestibulitis syndrome (VVS) and to examine the relationship between signs and symptoms of OFP and clinical characteristics of women with VVS, we investigated differences in psychologic characteristics and severity of painful intercourse. METHODS In this cross-sectional exploratory study, 137 women with VVS...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether Baby-guard-a new medical device with an ergonomic 3-chamber inflatable abdominal belt-can reduce complications associated with vaginal delivery. METHODS A randomized controlled single-blind prospective study of 80 pregnant women delivering at term was conducted at San Giuseppe Hospital, Empoli, Italy. In the study group (n=40), the abdominal belt was inflated to ...

he previous articles in this issue have dealt in depth with the technique of tissue expansion and its unique and remarkable advantages for T soft tissue reconstruction. However, as with all aspects of cutaneous surgery, tissue expansion does have its share of disadvantages and potential complications (Table 1). The disadvantages of tissue expansion are relatively few. The procedure does require...

Currently, the goal of treatment for those with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is to improve the quality of life through a reduction in symptoms. While the majority of treatment approaches involve the use of traditional medicine, more and more patients seek out a non-drug approach to managing their symptoms. Current forms of non-drug psychologic or mind/body treatment for IBS include hypnothera...

Environmental enrichment is known to positively influence the organism's psychologic and physiologic well-being. However, the effects of environmental enrichment on immune responses and cancer prognosis have not been clearly established and its impact on cancer therapy is unknown. Here, we report that environmental enrichment mediated a statistically significant improvement of the outcome of im...

Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) represent a group of chronic and recurrent symptoms in the absence any organic proven disorder [1]. There are several factors involved pathogenesis, although no single cause could be identified addressed properly, like motility disturbances, genetic implications, environmental factors, visceral sensitivity, psychologic alterations, gut-brain disturb...