Investigating the Relationship Between Sexual Function and Quality of Life in Menopausal Women

• Main Authors: Masumeh Ghazanfarpour, Talat Khadivzadeh, Masoudeh Babakhanian
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tehran University of Medical Sciences 2017-03-01
• Series: Journal of Family and Reproductive Health
• Subjects: Sexual Function; Quality of Life; Menopausal Women
• Online Access: https://jfrh.tums.ac.ir/index.php/jfrh/article/view/437
• ISSN: 1735-8949; 1735-9392

Objective: To evaluate the symptoms of menopausal women and the link between sexual function, menopausal symptoms and demographic variables. Materials and methods: This is a cross-sectional study in which 202 postmenopausal women admitted to the health care centers were selected. The Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) questionnaire and Menopause-Specific Quality of Life (MENQOL) were the main means of data gathering. Results: The results of our study suggested that suggested that women experienced a number of menopausal symptoms such hot flash, headache and neck pains, reduced physical strength weight gain, pain or leg cramps, intensified sexual problem than women who lack such symptoms. The FSFI scores were lower in women who were more than 60 years old, had low educational level (illiterate and elementary), and smoked cigarette. The most common symptoms were hot flashes (45%), Sleeplessness (37%), and pain in joints and muscles (36%). Moreover, the highest mean score belonged to symptoms associated with hot flashes (1.49 ± 1.38), sleeplessness (1.48 ± 1.71), and headache and neck pains (1.14 ± 1.59) table 2. Conclusion: Women with a history of sexual problem experienced more intense menopausal symptoms. This study sheds more light on the link between sexual problems and menopausal symptoms, which can helps healthcare professionals to offer a desirable package to their patients.