The purpose of this study is to see if vaginal laser therapy with MonaLisa Touch® will be more effective in treating vestibulodynia than current treatment with a topical lidocaine ointment. Vestibulodynia is a common bothersome condition and is more likely to occur in women on hormonal contraceptive treatment. To date, there are no effective treatments that address the underlying causes of the disease. MonaLisa Touch® is a laser procedure that delivers CO2 laser energy to the vaginal wall tissue. This energy causes the patient's own body to regenerate collagen and blood vessels, changing the tissue to make it healthier. The MonaLisa Touch® technology may help vestibulodynia by potentially fixing the underlying cause. This may be more effective than using the topical lidocaine which makes the tissue numb.
CO2 laser energy is currently used widely for the treatment of postmenopausal women who have vaginal atrophy due to the lack of estrogen. However, its effect on premenopausal women with hormonally-mediated vulvar vestibulodynia is unknown. This study seeks to evaluate the effect of CO2 laser on young women and compare it to topical lidocaine.