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Concept
Pessary
Summary
A pessary is a prosthetic device inserted into the vagina for structural and pharmaceutical purposes. It is most commonly used to treat stress urinary incontinence to stop urinary leakage and to treat pelvic organ prolapse to maintain the location of organs in the pelvic region. It can also be used to administer medications locally in the vagina or as a method of contraception.
Pessaries come in different shapes and sizes, so it is important that individuals be fitted for them by health care professionals to avoid any complications. However, there are a few instances and circumstances that allow individuals to purchase pessaries from a store without a prescription or without seeking help from a health care professional. Some side effects may occur if pessaries are not sized properly or regularly maintained, but with the appropriate care, pessaries are generally safe and well tolerated.
Early use of pessaries dates back to the ancient Egyptians, as they described using pessaries to treat pelvic organ prolapse. The term 'pessary' itself, is derived from the Ancient Greek word 'pessós', meaning round stone used for games. Pessaries are even mentioned in the oldest surviving copy of the Greek medical text, Hippocratic Oath, as something that physicians should never administer for the purposes of an abortion: "Similarly I will not give to a woman a pessary to cause abortion." The earliest documented pessaries were natural products. For example, Greek physicians Hippocrates and Soranus described inserting half of a pomegranate into the vagina to treat prolapse. It was not until the 16th century that the first purpose-made pessaries were made. For instance, in the late 1500s, Ambroise Paré was described as making oval pessaries from hammered brass and waxed cork. Nowadays, pessaries are generally made from silicone and are well tolerated and effective among patients who need them.
The most common use for pessaries is to treat pelvic organ prolapse.
Official source
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