The pelvic pain management service at UCLH was established in 2006 and our clinicians have a wealth of experience in managing women with abdominal and pelvic pain, and especially with those who have experienced complications following mesh implantation. Our service works in collaboration with the wider multidisciplinary team, and we are aware that many women who access this service will present with persistent pain issues. Therefore, we offer a one-off consultation to discuss your pain and pain management options.
The pain management team consists of advanced nurses, advanced physiotherapists, psychologists and pain consultants. The assessment will be carried out by one of our nurses and physiotherapists with experience in mesh complications and long-term pain. An experienced pelvic pain consultant will review your records after assessment. We have pain management psychologists in our service, and you will be offered a separate assessment with a psychologist who specialises in mesh complications, should this be required.
At the assessment, we will ask you to tell us about your history and any pain issues you may have. We will try and understand the impact pain has had on your life and discuss with you your expectations of any future interventions/mesh removal surgery. We will ask you to complete a questionnaire in advance, as this forms part of your individual assessment. It is also very important for us to collect information about mesh complications as this informs what services are needed to support women experiencing mesh related complications and pain.
The pain assessment is designed to support patients in a range of ways, tailored to patient’s specific needs. We are able to offer the following:
- Pain medication review
- Signposting to resources you might find helpful and supportive
- Signposting to local pain management services where appropriate
- Support your understanding of persistent pain and its associated symptoms
- Explain what pain management services offer
- Talk about the UCLH gender specific, specialised abdominal and pelvic pain management programme (LINK programme) and how to access it
- Open up conversations and provide advice about more sensitive issues such as sexual function and intimacy
- Review your flare-up plan
- Talk to you about physical activity and physiotherapy interventions
- Liaise with our pain doctors to explore other medical interventions if appropriate
- Discuss your expectations in terms of managing pain
- Discuss pain management options around the time of surgery
Following the assessment, we write a letter to you and your GP with a summary of our consultation including any recommendations. We always ask for your consent to the content of this letter and will agree with you what you feel is important to include about your pain.
We discuss your case with the rest of the mesh multidisciplinary team to ensure we have a sense of how the pain affects you and what can be done to address it.
We understand that each woman is at different stages of treatment and the aim of our assessment and our work with the wider multidisciplinary team is to support you to make the best decision for you at the right time. Our assessment will not impede your journey or surgical decision but may provide you with a space to discuss any concerns or support you may require.
We would like to make you aware that to ensure equity of care, the pain management centre is now only seeing those patients living with complications associated with mesh following a referral to the London Complex Mesh Centre. We cannot accept direct referrals. If you wish to attend our centre for treatment after your one-off assessment, we will require a letter from your GP.
We have listed some resources below which you may find helpful.
Understanding your pain:
This is a short video explaining the science of chronic abdominal and pelvic pain. There are also other resources you may find helpful.
This website is written by an individual who has persistent pain. She shares her thoughts on understanding pain, self-managing pain and of living and working well with pain.
This website provides more online resources for people living with persistent pain.
Sex and intimacy:
This website discusses the impact chronic pain can have on sexual activity.
This book provides an understanding of sexual problems and techniques to manage and treat them: Overcoming Sexual Problems by Vicki Ford
This website talks about an approach called “Sensate focus”. It is a technique used to improve intimacy and communication between partners around sex.
Toileting issues / incontinence:
Radar keys can be purchased online (e.g. Amazon). They are available to anyone and open more than 10,000 disabled toilets across the UK.
Flush is a free app, available for iOS (iPhones and iPads), that shows the nearest public toilet. It covers worldwide.
Wheelmate is a free app, available for iOS (iPhones and iPads), that shows wheelchair-friendly toilets and parking spaces. It covers 45 countries.
Changing Places Toilet finder is a free app, available for iOS (iPhones and iPads), designed for people who cannot use standard accessible toilets.
London Complex Mesh Centre (LCMC) Direct line: 020 3447 5895
Switchboard: 020 3456 7890
Extension: 75895
Email: uclh.
Page last updated: 23 May 2024
Review due: 01 June 2025