Prevalence of Sexual Dysfunction in Women With Depression: Need for Psychosexual Health Promotion Approach

Abstract

Introduction: Depression-associated sexual dysfunction (SD) is a pervasive and ignorant problem among the general population. The antidepressant used to treat depression may further alter the sexual response cycle in one way or another. This study aims to assess the prevalence of SD in females with major depressive disorders and the effects of antidepressant therapy after 4 weeks of follow-ups. Material and Methods: In a prospective observational survey, 94 women diagnosed with depression and on antidepressant therapy were purposively enrolled. Female Sexual Functioning Index (FSFI) and Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) are administered at baseline and 4 weeks of treatment to measure sexual function and depression changes. Relevant descriptive and inferential statistics are applied to compute the results. Results: The mean age of the participants was 35.87 (±5.10) years. A total of 95.7% of participants showed SD at baseline assessment. There was a significant difference (31.87 vs 18.51, P < .001) in depression from baselines to 4 weeks after antidepressant therapy. Further, a significant negative correlation was reported between the MADRS scores and the scores of arousals (r = −0.396, P < .001), lubrication (r = −0.453, P < .001), orgasm (r = −0.342, P < .001), satisfaction (r = −0.407, P < .001), pain (r = −0.362, P < .001), and total domains of FSFI (r = −0.412, P < .001) after 4 weeks. Using cut-off scores of different areas, decreased sexual desire was reported in 97.9%, poor vaginal lubrication (100%), a problem with arousal (100%), reduced satisfaction (96.8%), reduced ability to achieve orgasm (100%), and pain during sexual intercourse in 100% of the participants. Conclusions: There is a high prevalence of SD in women with depression. There is a marked improvement in depression at the end of 4 weeks. However, sexual function status remains unchanged and indicates the need for time to improve, suggesting different study designs.

Sexual dysfunction, marital relationship, and subjective quality of life among women with schizophrenia: Analytical case-control study

“…The findings revealed 95.3% of SD in female participants, higher than the previous study, which reported a prevalence of 84.2% in the studied women with schizophrenia. [ 4 ] Furthermore, the findings on SD agree with previous studies, which reported that more than 90% of women attending psychiatric departments suffer from one type of SD. [ 28 ] However, the prevalence of SDs reported varies from 40 to 73.3% among female participants in previous studies with different instruments.…”

“…[ 2 ] In a country like India, due to cultural barriers, societal taboos, and social stigma, patients often feel uncomfortable discussing their sexual issues, and physicians also avoid discussing sexual issues, fearing that it may cause trouble forming doctor-patient relationships. [ 3 4 ]…”

Sexual and reproductive health issues of women attending psychiatric clinic in India—A qualitative study

“…Compared to other domains, dysfunction is less commonly reported, including desire (97.9%), arousal (97.6%), and pain (96.8%), perhaps due to low expectation in a culture where women do not experience high levels of sexual satisfaction. [ 15 ] However, highly divergent data on sexual function demand further study to establish a particular conclusion among WMI. [ 16 ] Participants living in small families do not have privacy for their physical intimacy.…”

“…Similar study findings supported that the social determinants of health, including poverty and housing instability, cause sexual dysfunction. [ 15 ] Participants reported that their sexual health is being affected by their responsibilities as a wife, a mother, or a sister. Compared to the various roles of a woman in a family, sexual health is least preferred.…”