Sexual dysfunction among six months postpartum women in north-eastern Malaysia

Abstract

Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) is a common problem among postpartum women. However, little is known about this topic in Malaysia. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of sexual dysfunction and its associated factors in postpartum women in Kelantan, Malaysia. In this cross-sectional study, we recruited 452 sexually active women at six months postpartum from four primary care clinics in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. The participants were asked to fill in questionnaires consisting of sociodemographic information and the Malay Version of the Female Sexual Function Index-6. The data were analyzed using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. With a 95% response rate, the prevalence of sexual dysfunction among sexually active, six months postpartum women was 52.4% (n = 225). FSD was significantly associated with the older husband’s age (p = 0.034) and lower frequency of sexual intercourse (p<0.001). Therefore, the prevalence of postpartum sexual dysfunction in women is relatively high in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. Efforts should be made to raise awareness among healthcare providers about screening for FSD in postpartum women and for their counseling and early treatment.

The Effect of Counseling on Postpartum Women's Sexual Satisfaction

“…Even if there is a discussion about postpartum women's health, it is mostly about the use of postpartum contraception to provide space between births. There is very little counseling regarding efforts to reduce sexual dysfunction or increase sexual satisfaction during the postpartum period (Chayachinda et al, 2015;Ng et al, 2023). This could be due to a lack of provider knowledge or clinical guidelines (Janssen et al, 2023).…”

“…The counseling provided should be comprehensive to married couples regarding sexuality before, during, and after pregnancy (Erfanifar et al, 2022). Other researchers also argue that postpartum women need professional counseling about their body image and sexual life after giving birth (Gommesen et al, 2022;Ng et al, 2023).…”

“…Especially at 12 weeks after giving birth (Eid et al, 2015). It may even take up to 12 months to return to the level of sexual activity you had before pregnancy (Ng et al, 2023). For Indonesia, the author has not found clear data regarding sexual satisfaction, especially in primiparas.…”

“…Various references state the reasons why sexual satisfaction cannot be achieved. Several children, physiological changes during pregnancy, continuous production of prolactin during breastfeeding, episiotomy (Banaei et al, 2018;Chayachinda et al, 2015;Eid et al, 2015), perineal tears, prolapse, infection, obstetric fistula, female genital cutting, postpartum pain (Banaei et al, 2018;Eid et al, 2015;Wood et al, 2022), uterine prolapse, forced sexual intercourse, sexual violence, and loss of sexual desire/arousal (Ng et al, 2023;Wood et al, 2022), fatigue, how to give birth, urinary incontinence, and depression (Banaei et al, 2018;Eid et al, 2015;Ratnaningsih, 2019;Saotome et al, 2018).…”

“…These women cannot enjoy sexual relations. Even though sexual problems are reported to be the second main cause of divorce among Muslim couples (Ng et al, 2023). The NSSS (The New Sexual Satisfaction Scale) questionnaire is a type of questionnaire that can be used to measure sexual satisfaction in both clinical and non-clinical samples.…”