Sexual function and related factors in Iranian woman with epilepsy

Epileptic women are faced with many sexual challenges in their life due to medical and non-medical factors. The present study was conducted to assess sexual function in epileptic women and its related factors.

The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 196 epileptic married women of reproductive age who were members of the Iranian Epilepsy Association and were selected continuously over six months through convenience sampling. The data collection tools included the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) and questions about the causes of sexual dysfunction. The statistical tests including: Chi-square, t-test, one-way ANOVA, linear and logistic regression.

According to the results, 74.5% of the participants suffered from sexual dysfunction and scored the lowest in terms of the orgasm and sexual satisfaction dimensions. The factors associated with sexual dysfunction included age over 40, poor education, more than 15 years of marriage, poor economic status, history of infertility and irregular menstruation, several seizures per month, nocturnal seizures, triple or multiple drug therapies and not using anticonvulsant drugs that have no effect on the liver enzymes. From participants' perspective, the most common causes of sexual dysfunction include anxiety and stress, emotional problems with the spouse, dissatisfaction with the experience of unwanted sex and the type of drugs used.

Since the incidence of sexual dysfunction in epileptic women is high and multifactorial, it is recommended for experts and health service providers to not only seek to better control the patients' seizures, but also assess them in terms sexual function.