The relationship between sexual life and urinary condition in the French community

As part of a large, nationwide community-based study in France on health and urinary condition, involving 2011 men aged between 50 and 80 years, information was collected on sexual life factors (e.g., frequency of sexual desires and sexual relations, and the frequency of having difficulties with erection and ejaculation) in addition to an assessment of overall sexual life satisfaction. Data on sexual life were obtained by means of a self-administered questionnaire, while information on the frequency of urinary symptoms was obtained by a professional interviewer. The median number of sexual relations decreased with age from "once per week" in those aged 50-59 years to "less than once per week" in those aged 60-69 years to "never" in those aged over 70 years, while the percentage reporting difficulty with erection at least some of the time increased from 20 to 38% between 50-59 and 70-79 years, respectively. The number of sexual relations during the past month was by far the most important factor having an influence on overall sexual life satisfaction, with those men reporting relations less than once per week almost 10 times more likely to be dissatisfied. Severity of overall urinary symptoms (as well as many individual symptoms) was also inversely related to sexual life satisfaction, and the association persisted after taking account of the strong influence of age and the frequency of sexual relations. All other factors being equal (age, number of relations, comorbidities, and previous prostate surgery), the likelihood of men being dissatisfied with sexual life increased twofold in men with moderate symptoms and fourfold in those with severe symptoms. The results obtained in the current study should be considered preliminary, given the complexity of the relationship between these two factors and the lack of previously published evidence. They certainly call for further studies, which should include a detailed assessment of sexual function and a clinical assessment of the urinary condition.