Epidemiology and care of female sexual dysfunction

Sexual dysfunction can have a negative impact on the well-being of an individual. For women, sexual dysfunction encompasses sexual interest / arousal disorder, female orgasmic disorder and genitopelvic pain / penetration disorder. Although sexual dysfunction has been identified as a significant public health problem, research on sexual dysfunction has primarily focused on men rather than women. Comprehensive epidemiological data on female sexual dysfunction and information on current levels of care are needed in order to better address women’s sexual health. The purpose of this dissertation was three-fold: to provide a global estimate of the prevalence of female sexual dysfunction, to summarize the predictors of female sexual dysfunction, and to investigate the current barriers in terms of diagnosing and treating female sexual dysfunction. Quantitative data on the prevalence of female sexual dysfunction (part I) and qualitative data on the predictors of female sexual dysfunction (part II) were collected by means of a systematic literature review. A regional survey of obstetricians and gynecologists (part III) was conducted to assess the current barriers to care for medical practitioners in the state of Bavaria, Germany. Using data from 135 international, peer-reviewed publications, it was estimated that 41% of premenopausal women worldwide report some form of sexual dysfunction. While a wide variety of risk factors could be identified, exercise, sex education and marrying later were consistently shown to have a protective effect. Still, diagnosing and treating female sexual dysfunction remains challenging for medical practitioners. The greatest barriers mentioned by doctors were: too little time with patients, insufficient training in residency and too few sexual therapists in Germany. The results of these three projects provide insight into the still highly under-researched field of women’s sexual health. Although two out of five premenopausal women report some form of female sexual dysfunction, therapy options for women are limited. Furthermore, sexual dysfunction is associated with a number of age-related factors; thus, given Germany’s aging population, medical professionals must be given the means, i.e. time, training and compensation, to adequately address sexual health in their daily practice. Finally, women’s and men’s sexual health are equally relevant; greater awareness and increased financial resources are needed in order to achieve a more balanced provision of care for women.