Psychosomatic Obstetrics Gynecology And Endocrinology

The Sixth International Congress of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynecology, which took place from 2 to 6 September 1980 in the congressional chambers of the former Reichstag building in Berlin, had as its theme "Women in a Changing Society." Partic ular emphasis was placed on the fact that in illness, as well as in good health, women must be considered in a comprehensive psychosocial context. Observations from medi cal, psychological, sociological, and anthropological perspectives on the healthy and sick woman through the various stages of her life presented a wide spectrum of scien tific research. Sessions covering such fundamental topics as the problems of the young mother, women in the postgenerative phase, and the early mother-child relationship were enriched by many recent scientific contributions. Further subjects, ranging from the dialogue in the gynecologist's consulting room through the emotional situation of the gynecologist, body language in female sexuality, and sexual disorders experienced by gynecological patients to psychosomatics and cancer, were pursued in small workshops. Of particular psychoendocrinological interest were the contributions on obesity and the premenstrual syndrome. The results of this workshop and another on unwanted pregnancy have ap peared recently in separate monographs.

These essays examine the global impact of infertility as a major reproductive health issue, one that has profoundly affected the lives of countless women and men. The contributors address a range of topics including how the deeply gendered nature of infertility sets the blame on women's shoulders.

First published in 1996. Childbirth: Changing Ideas and Practices is intended to pro-vide readers with key primary sources and exemplary historio-graphical approaches through which they can more fully appreciate a variety of themes in British and American childbirth, mid-wifery, and obstetrics. The articles in this series are designed to serve as a resource for students and teachers in fields including history, women’s studies, human biology, sociology, and anthropology. They will also meet the socio-historical educational needs of pre-medical and nursing students and aid pre-professional, allied health, and midwifery instructors in their lesson preparations.

Despite a plethora of theories, premenstrual syndrome (PMS) has remained an enigma. There has persisted in the literature a constant conflict as to the existence of the syndrome, a question as to whether it is one syndrome or several, and a debate as to whether the origin is psychic, somatic, or both. Advances in endocrinology, specifically in radioligand assays, allowing for accurate hormone measurements, have precipitated a more scientific evaluation of PMS in recent years. Nonetheless, diffi culties have persisted in accumulating well-documented data because of the protean nature of the syndrome. Indeed, even at this time, the question of what requires measurement during the follicular phase of the cycle and the premenstrual phase remains unresolved, and is difficult to place in perspective. In view of the persisting conflict between the organic and the psychological schools of thought, we, the editors of this book, considered the Sixth International Congress of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynecology to be an ideal venue for a workshop in which both parties could be encouraged to participate. Towards this end, the organizing committee of the Inter national Society of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynecology (ISPOG) was approached, and their response was extremely encouraging. In this respect, we wish to record our thanks to the Scientific Committee oflSOPG for allowing this workshop to be organized under their auspices, but totally under our direction. We, in turn, stand responsible for the format and content of the workshop.