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Sexuality After Spinal Cord Injury. Which Factors Influence Sexual Activity and Satisfaction?

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Abstract

The impact of sexual impairment in spinal cord injured patients is complex and multifactorial. Despite its importance, the factors that determine their sexual activity and satisfaction are mostly unknown. The objectives of this study were to identify and characterize sexual activity among these patients, assess their sexual satisfaction and elucidate the factors that influence it. We designed a cross-sectional study, consisting in a telephone questionnaire, addressing some topics about sexuality and sexual satisfaction, applied to spinal cord injured individuals previously admitted to a Rehabilitation Hospital. A total of 112 individuals accepted to answer the survey. Sexual activity was reported by 49 (43.8%) and was associated with younger age, higher functional status, male gender and active employment status. Higher sexual satisfaction was significantly associated with younger age, younger age at the time of injury, active employment status and sexual counselling after lesion. No correlation was found between sexual activity or sexual satisfaction and neurologic level, AIS classification or the etiology of the lesion. We concluded that sexual performance after SCI is not exclusively determined by genital function and the degree of physical impairment. Personal and contextual factors (in particular, those which promote social participation) seems to be stronger determinants of sexual activity and sexual satisfaction than the neurologic characteristics of the lesion. This study reinforces the importance of a comprehensive rehabilitation program, including sexual counselling to SCI individuals and their partners.

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Funding

The authors declare that no funding was received for the current study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Serviço de Medicina Física e de Reabilitação, Centro Hospitalar Tondela-Viseu, Av. Rei Dom Duarte, 3504-509, Viseu, Portugal

    Bruno Silva Lopes, Vera Ermida & Jorge Caldas

  2. Faculdade de Medicina Dentária, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Viseu, Portugal

    Bruno Silva Lopes

  3. Centro de Medicina de Reabilitação da Região Centro, Rovisco Pais, Cantanhede, Portugal

    Xénia Verraest, Ana Raquel Correia, Paulo Margalho & Jorge Laíns

  4. Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Jorge Laíns

Authors
  1. Bruno Silva Lopes
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  2. Xénia Verraest
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  3. Ana Raquel Correia
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  4. Vera Ermida
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  5. Jorge Caldas
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  6. Paulo Margalho
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  7. Jorge Laíns
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bruno Silva Lopes.

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Conflict of interest

All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethics Approval

The study design was conducted according to Good Clinical Practice guidelines and the Declaration of Helsinki. The protocol of the study was previously approved by the Committee of Ethics for Health of the Hospital where the study took place (Ethics approval number: CMRP12Y).

Consent to Participate

Informed consent was obtained from all patients prior to the questionnaire took place.

Data Protection

In order to guarantee the total concealment of the data and to maintain the uniformity of the procedures, each patient was assigned with a random alphanumeric code in order to maintain his anonymity and no personal traceable information were collected.

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Lopes, B.S., Verraest, X., Correia, A.R. et al. Sexuality After Spinal Cord Injury. Which Factors Influence Sexual Activity and Satisfaction?. Sex Disabil 40, 393–404 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11195-022-09730-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11195-022-09730-6

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