The New Blueprint for Women's Health: How Integrated Centers are Disrupting Pelvic Pain Care

HOUSTON, TX – October 20, 2026 — For decades, the treatment pathway for chronic pelvic pain and endometriosis has been defined by fragmentation. A patient might see a general gynecologist for initial symptoms, wait months for a referral to a pain specialist, and then spend years searching for a surgeon capable of performing complex excisions. Today, a new operational model is challenging that disjointed standard.

Pelvic Rehabilitation Medicine (PRM), a national healthcare organization specializing in endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain, announced the launch of its Houston Center of Excellence. The facility brings together advanced endometriosis excision surgery and specialized, non-surgical pelvic pain care under one roof. While the opening marks a significant geographical expansion for the company, it also highlights a broader, highly lucrative shift in the healthcare industry: the rise of specialized, multidisciplinary boutique clinics targeting historically underdiagnosed women's health conditions.

Closing the Care Gap in the Sunbelt

Endometriosis affects an estimated 190 million women worldwide, yet the disease is notorious for its diagnostic delays. Patients frequently endure years of dismissed symptoms and misdiagnoses before receiving targeted care. The Texas medical landscape, despite boasting world-class institutions, has not been immune to these systemic hurdles. Patients across the region often find themselves navigating a maze of out-of-network providers to piece together a functional treatment plan.

The Houston Center of Excellence aims to collapse that timeline by housing a comprehensive care team in a single destination. The surgical wing is led by Dr. Brooke Thigpen and Dr. Tamisa Koythong, two board-certified, fellowship-trained minimally invasive gynecologic surgeons. Both physicians completed their specialized training at the prestigious Baylor College of Medicine and bring extensive experience in robotic-assisted gynecologic surgery. They are joined by pelvic pain specialist Rasheedrick Clark, MSN, APRN, FNP-C, who oversees the non-surgical rehabilitation components of patient care.

“Patients with endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain often spend years searching for answers while moving between specialists who may only address one piece of an incredibly complex condition,” said Dr. Allyson Augusta Shrikhande, co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of PRM. “By bringing Dr. Thigpen, Dr. Koythong, and Rasheedrick Clark together at our Houston Center of Excellence, we are creating a destination where patients can access exceptional surgical expertise alongside the comprehensive pelvic pain care that is central to PRM’s approach. This is exactly the kind of integrated model patients with endometriosis deserve.”

By centralizing these services, the clinic addresses the overlapping causes of pelvic pain, including adenomyosis, uterine fibroids, and pelvic floor dysfunction, offering individualized treatment options throughout the entirety of a patient's medical journey.

Beyond Excision Alone: The Medical Debate Over Multidisciplinary Protocols

For years, the gold standard for treating severe endometriosis has been deep excision surgery—the meticulous cutting away of diseased tissue. However, a growing consensus within the medical community suggests that surgery alone is rarely a silver bullet. Chronic pelvic pain triggers a cascade of neurogenic inflammation, often leading to severe pelvic floor muscle spasms that persist long after the offending endometriosis lesions have been surgically removed.

This clinical reality is the foundation of the company's proprietary non-surgical treatment approach, known as the PRM Protocol. The patented, office-based procedure targets inflamed pelvic nerves and spastic muscles directly. According to the organization's published outcomes, patients undergoing this protocol have reported a 96 percent reduction in emergency room visits, a 68 percent reduction in opioid use, and significant improvements in daily function.

The integration of this protocol with advanced surgical intervention represents a critical evolution in gynecologic care. Dr. Thigpen, whose academic research has heavily focused on robotic-assisted ureterolysis for deep infiltrating endometriosis, and Dr. Koythong, who utilizes advanced robotic techniques to reduce pain and support recovery, represent the surgical vanguard of this dual approach.

Medical analysts observing the space note that combining operative interventions with targeted nerve and muscle rehabilitation is increasingly viewed as essential for long-term symptom management. Because chronic pain effectively rewires the nervous system and tightens the pelvic floor, post-operative physical therapy and nerve-targeted treatments are necessary to retrain the body. Without this multidisciplinary intervention, patients face a much higher risk of symptom recurrence, even after flawless excision surgery.

The Specialized Women's Health Model: Private Healthcare Expansion

Beyond the clinical implications, the launch of the Houston Center of Excellence underscores a massive financial pivot in the healthcare sector. Between 2020 and 2025, private capital deployment into women's health segments surged, with estimates ranging from $34 billion to nearly $60 billion. While early investments were heavily concentrated in fertility and reproductive technology, venture capital and private equity are increasingly diversifying into high-growth, underpenetrated markets like chronic pelvic pain and complex gynecology.

Founded in 2017 by Dr. Allyson Augusta Shrikhande and CEO Dr. Gautam Shrikhande, a Harvard-trained vascular surgeon, PRM has aggressively scaled its operations, expanding to over a dozen locations nationwide. The company's growth trajectory is indicative of the broader commercial scalability of specialized boutique health centers. These models promise steady returns driven by clear, historically ignored market demand. In 2025 alone, investment in women's health companies reached a record $1.55 billion in disclosed equity, signaling robust confidence in specialized care models.

However, the rapid expansion of private, specialized healthcare models also introduces complex questions regarding patient access and insurance affordability. While integrated centers offer a streamlined, superior standard of care, specialized treatments for endometriosis often involve complex billing structures. Many patients nationwide report significant hurdles navigating commercial insurance networks for multidisciplinary pelvic care, frequently encountering out-of-pocket costs for advanced excision surgeries or proprietary outpatient therapies.

The organization has publicly emphasized a commitment to cost transparency and works to navigate insurance pricing with its patients. Yet, the broader industry trend highlights a tension between the development of elite, centralized care facilities and the realities of equitable healthcare access. As specialized clinics continue to proliferate across the Sunbelt and beyond, the ultimate test of their success will be their ability to integrate these advanced, multidisciplinary protocols into mainstream, accessible insurance networks.

The establishment of the Houston Center of Excellence serves as a prime case study in this ongoing healthcare evolution. By marrying high-tech robotic excision with proprietary outpatient rehabilitation, the clinic is redefining what comprehensive endometriosis care looks like in the modern era. It is a bold operational blueprint that recognizes chronic pelvic pain not just as a surgical problem, but as a complex, systemic condition requiring a unified, well-funded, and deeply specialized approach.