Prevalence of female sexual dysfunction among diabetic females: a cross-sectional case controlled study.

BACKGROUND: Sexual relationships, sexual functions are all parts of the female sexual identity and which influence physiological, psychological, and reproductive functions of women.

AIM OF THE WORK: The study aimed to identify prevalence of Female Sexual Dysfunction (FSD) in women affected by type 1 and type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM) and to evaluate the impact of diabetes on female sexuality.

PATIENT AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 400 married females who were interviewed to answer Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) questionnaire and were divided into two groups: the first group included 300 diabetes patients (134 patients with type 1 DM and 166 patients with type 2 DM), while the second included 100 women not diagnosed with diabetes who served as controls.

RESULTS: Considering female sexual dysfunction (score < 26.55), there was statistically significant increase of patients with female sexual dysfunction (FSD) in Type 1 DM (50.7%) when compared to type 2 DM patients (28.9%) or control group (10.0%).

CONCLUSION: FSD is a significant health problem in premenopausal women complaining of DM. Females with type 1 DM were more affected than females with type 2 DM, who in turn were more affected than healthy controls. Long duration of the disease was the main risk factor for developing FSD.