Women and Sexual Dysfunction: It's the Majority

It's proving that more women than not have sexual dysfunction of one kind or another.

Almost two-thirds of females attending a general urology practice reported that they suffered from sexual dysfunction, according to a paper in the August issue of BJUI, the journal of the British Association of Urological Surgeons.

Dysfunction rose with age in all categories except orgasm, with more than half of women aged from 18 to 30 reporting orgasm problems, significantly higher than women aged 31 to 54.

Researchers asked 587 women aged from 18 to 95, who attended a urology clinic in New Jersey, about six key areas of female sexual dysfunction (FSD): lack of desire, arousal issues, lack of lubrication, problems achieving orgasm, lack of satisfaction and pain during intercourse. 63% of the women suffered from FSD and that there were significant links between FSD and age, menopausal status and use of selective antidepressants.

Key findings of the survey included:

· The most sexually active age groups were 31-45 year-olds (87%), 18-30 year-olds (85%) and 46-54 year-olds (74%). It then fell sharply in 55-70 year-olds (45%) and in women who were over 70 (15%).

· The top overall problem was lack of desire (47%), followed by orgasm problems (45%), arousal issues (40%), lack of satisfaction (39%), lack of lubrication (37%) and pain (36%).

· Five of the six categories increased as the women got older: desire from 36% to 96%, arousal from 27% to 54%, lubrication from 26% to 45%, satisfaction from 28% to 88% and pain from 10% to 56%.

· The only category that bucked the trend was orgasm, with problems higher in the 18-30 age group (54%) than in the 31-45 (43%) and 46-54 (48%) age groups. It then rose to 66% at 55-70 and 87% when women were over 70.

The top three problems by age group were:

· 18-30: orgasm (54%), desire (36%) and satisfaction (28%)

· 31-45: desire (48%), orgasm (43%) and satisfaction (40%)

· 46-54: desire (65%), satisfaction (53%) and orgasm (48%)

· 55-70: desire (77%), orgasm (66%), satisfaction (65%)

· Over 70: desire (96%), satisfaction (88%) and orgasm (87%).

“FSD can have a major effect on women’s quality of life” says Dr Fromer, author of the report. “Self-esteem, sense of wholeness and relationships can be seriously and adversely affected, exacting a heavy emotional toll. Researchers have found significant associations between major categories of sexual dysfunction, reduced physical and emotional satisfaction and general well-being. That is why it is so important to ensure that problems are identified and tackled wherever possible," said Fromer.

Dave