Feasibility of Ultrasound-Guided Peritoneal Perfusion with Ozone in the Treatment of Chronic Pelvic Pain: A Bicenter Retrospective Analysis

• Published in: Pain physician 2021-05, Vol.24 (3), p.E367-E375
• Main Authors: Zhang, Man-Yu, Li, Tong, Qian, Xiao-Yan, Liu, Hui, Zhao, Qian-Nan, Liu, Cai-Cai, Wang, Yong, Williams, John P, An, Jian-Xiong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Pain; Ultrasonic imaging
• ISSN: 1533-3159; 2150-1149
• DOI: 10.36076/ppj.2021/24/E367

Numerous therapies have been developed for the treatment of chronic pelvic pain (CPP). Oxygen-ozone therapy is a new method for the treatment of CPP. This article evaluated the feasibility of ultrasound-guided peritoneal perfusion with ozone in patients with CPP. This is a bicenter retrospective study. The study was conducted at 2 pain centers of a university hospital. The medical records of patients with CPP (n = 60) from March 2016 until October 2018 were collected and reviewed. Group A contained 19 patients who were treated with a 1500 mcg dose of ozonated water (10 mcg/mL concentration and 150 mL volume), group B contained 23 patients using the same dose of ozonated water but a 15 mcg/mL concentration and 100 mL volume. Group C included 18 patients using a similar ozone dose but delivered in an oxygen-ozone mixture (15 mcg/mL concentration and 100 mL volume oxygen-ozone mixture). Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores for pain of the 3 groups were compared at pretreatment, posttreatment, 1, 3, and 6 months posttreatment. The injection pain was evaluated using a 4-point verbal rating scale. Quality of life (QoL), anxiety, and depression were assessed at pretreatment and at 6 months posttreatment. The VAS scores of the 3 groups decreased over time following treatment. Group A showed much higher pain scores compared with groups B and C at 1, 3, and 6 months posttreatment. However, the injection pain for groups B and C was higher than group A, but there was no difference seen between group B and C. At 6 months posttreatment, the QoL for all patients improved compared with pretreatment, whereas the anxiety and depression did not demonstrate differences. The main limitations of this study are the retrospective study design, limited case number, and short follow-up period. Ultrasound-guided peritoneal perfusion with ozone is a feasible therapy for patients with CPP.