Risk factors for sexual dysfunction during the first year postpartum: A prospective study

Abstract

Postpartum sexual function may be influenced by hormonal, psychological, social, and other factors, and this influence may result in a woman suffering from sexual dysfunction during the postpartum period. 1,2 According to previous studies, 20%-60% of women report dysfunctions in their sex life in the first 6 months postpartum. [3][4][5][6][7] In the literature, physical and psychological factors such as relationship satisfaction, depression, and mode of delivery have been examined in association with postpartum female sexual dysfunction.However, reports of the effects of these factors on women's postpartum sexual function are inconsistent. This could be the result of methodologic limitations such as cross-sectional study design, lack of long-term follow-up studies and validated questionnaires,

The Impact of Mode of Birth, and Episiotomy, on Postpartum Sexual Function in the Medium- and Longer-Term: An Integrative Systematic Review

“…Of the 31 included studies, 9 were cross-sectional studies (4966 women; including at least 1591 primiparous women), 3 were case–control studies (368 women; including at least 357 primiparous women), 5 were retrospective cohort studies (1872 women; including at least 474 primiparous women) and 14 were prospective cohort studies (4217 women; including at least 3338 primiparous women). The studies were published between 2005 and 2022, originating from 17 countries including Turkey [ 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 ], the United States of America [ 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 ], Iran [ 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 ], Australia [ 73 , 74 ], Austria [ 75 ], Egypt [ 76 ], Poland [ 77 ], Germany [ 78 ], Japan [ 79 ], Italy [ 80 , 81 ], Switzerland [ 82 ], Hungary [ 83 ], China [ 84 ], Taiwan [ 85 ], Sweden [ 86 ], Israel [ 87 ] and Portugal [ 88 ]. One study did not disclose the country of origin of the research [ 89 ].…”

“…In the included studies, six different measures were used to assess sexual functioning. The FSFI was used in 25 studies [ 59 , 60 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 87 , 88 , 89 ]. A combination of the FSFI and SAQ was used in one study [ 78 ].…”

“…The PISQ-12 was used in one study [ 86 ]. Data in the included studies were collected by administering the valid measures of sexual function in the following ways: four studies used the postal system [ 73 , 74 , 79 , 82 ], nine studies used face to face structured interviews, or self-reporting in person at the clinics [ 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 71 , 72 , 84 ], two studies used telephone interviews to complete the questionnaire [ 65 , 87 ], four studies used online forums or web/based questionnaires [ 77 , 83 , 86 , 88 ], one study used a combination of telephone and in person questionnaires [ 68 ], and eleven studies did not specify how they administered the measures to the participants [ 66 , 67 , 69 , 70 , 75 , 76 , 78 , 80 , 81 , 85 , 89 ].…”

“…Of the 31 studies, 18 measured sexual function in the medium-term at ≥six months and <12 months postpartum (4945 women; including at least 3409 primiparous women) [ 62 , 63 , 64 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 71 , 74 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 83 , 85 , 87 , 88 , 89 ], 20 measured sexual function in the longer-term at ≥12 months postpartum (8643 women; including at least 3887 primiparous women) [ 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 65 , 66 , 70 , 71 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 78 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 88 , 89 ] and eight measured sexual function in both the medium-term and longer-term (2378 women; including at least 1749 primiparous women) [ 62 , 71 , 74 , 78 , 83 , 88 , 89 , 90 ]. One study measured sexual function between six and 24 months postpartum and did not provide an average time when sexual function was measured (213 women; all 213 women were primiparous) [ 72 ].…”

Eine Analyse zur Wiederaufnahme von Geschlechtsverkehr und dem Auftreten von Dyspareunie post sectionem

“…Einen Einfluss zwischen den verschiedenen Geburtsmodi konnten sie nicht feststellen [13]. Ebenso fanden Spaich et al bei Ihrer Untersuchung ausschließlich Stillen als negative Auswirkung auf das postpartale Sexualleben [14], wie auch Szollosi et al [15] und Matthies et al [16] Stillen als Risikofaktor für das Auftreten einer postpartalen Einschränkung des Sexuallebens beschreiben. Die Ergebnisse unserer Studie zeigen, dass 3 M. pp.…”