In addition to working toward agreement on appropriate nomenclature, the consensus conference participants are developing an assessment tool, currently in draft form, to aid clinicians in evaluating women for the syndrome.
"We feel we’ve identified a number of signs and findings that would help clinicians – particularly those who don’t treat a lot of patients with this condition. The tool – which involves a grid-based design outlining mild, moderate, and severe symptom categories – may prove valuable for providers who want to chart severity or just scan the grid to assist in making a diagnosis," Dr. Gass said. The tool also could prove useful in the research setting, he added.
ISSWSH and NAMS will be publishing the proceedings of the workshop in upcoming issues of their respective journals – the Journal of Sexual Medicine and the journal Menopause.
The groups also plan to put forward the proposed new name at a December meeting of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. At that meeting, ACOG will review all terminology related to obstetrics and gynecology and update terminology as appropriate.
"We hope to address the ACOG urogynecology and menopause working group to see if the new name is acceptable to that group as well. Personally I think it’s important to have an accurate term that is as neutral as possible," Dr. Gass said.
Dr. Gass reported having no disclosures. Dr. Portman has been a speaker, consultant, or advisory board member for, and/or received grant or research support from Bayer, Noven Pharmaceuticals, Palatin Technologies, and other companies.