Assessment of Sexual Functions in Male Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis Compared with Healthy Controls

Abstract

Amaç: Bu çalışmada, ankilozan spondilitin (AS), erkek hastalarda seksüel fonksiyon üzerindeki etkisi, araştırıldı, sonuçlar sağlıklı erkek kontrollerle karşılaştırıldı ve hastalık ile ilgili değişkenlerle olan ilişkisi belirlendi. Objectives: This study aims to investigate the impact of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) on sexual functions in male patients, to compare the results with healthy male controls, and to identify the associations with disease-related variables. Hastalar ve yöntemler: Patients and methods:A total of 39 male patients with AS (mean age 38 years; range 27 to 52 years) and 27 healthy male subjects (mean age 30 years; range 23 to 45 years) were included in the study. The Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index (BASMI), the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), the Short Form 36 (SF-36) and the Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life (ASQoL) questionnaire were used for those with AS, while the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) were utilized for all the study subjects. Results:The frequency of erectile dysfunction in the male patients with AS and the healthy controls was 43.6% and 51.9%, respectively. No statistically significant differences were found with regard to demographic characteristics, the IIEF, or the BDI scores between the two groups (p>0.05). No significant correlation was found between any domain of the IIEF and the AS indices or laboratory parameters. However, erectile function, overall satisfaction, the total IIEF, and the level of erectile dysfunction were found to be correlated with the BDI. Conclusion:Sexual dysfunction is common in male patients with AS; however, we could not find any statistically significant differences between them and the healthy male controls in terms of sexual functions. Sexual dysfunction in male patients with AS seems to be associated with an unfavorable psychological status.

Anxiety, Depression, Problem Solving and Stress Management in Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis

“…A person with a high self-esteem has a positive evaluation of himself or herself and is able to recognize his/her strengths (28). We identified only one study that focused on selfesteem level in AS patients (25). Similar to our study, that study found lower self-esteem and significantly higher levels of depression, anxiety and alexithymia in AS patients.…”

“…In one study using the HADS tool, Baysal et al (8) reported significantly higher anxiety scores among AS patients but no significantly difference in depression scores versus control group. Studies have looked at other parameters such as quality of life (6), disability (5), sexual dysfunction (25), and alexithymia (26) in addition to anxiety and depression and found considerable impairment in these areas. As expected, we observed significantly higher scores for anxiety and depression in AS patients versus healthy control group in our study.…”

Systematic Review of the Impact of Inflammatory Arthritis on Intimate Relationships and Sexual Function

“…The search strategy returned 2100 unique citations of which 55 (2.6%) (7)(8)(9)19,22,27,(60)(61)(62)(63)(64)(65)(66)(67)(68)(69)(70)(71)(72)(73)(74)(75)(76)(77)(115)(116)(117)(118)(119)(120)(121) met the inclusion criteria (Figure 1). Descriptive characteristics of the 55 included studies are summarised in Table 1.…”

“…Descriptive characteristics of the 55 included studies are summarised in Table 1. Of the included studies, 50 (90.1%) were quantitative, (7,9,19,27,(60)(61)(62)(63)(64)(65)(66)(67)(68)(69)(70)(71)(72)(73)(74)(75)(76)79,81,82,(84)(85)(86)(87)(88)(90)(91)(92)(93)(94)(96)(97)(98)(99)(100)(101)(102)(115)(116)(117)(118)(119)(120)(121) five (9.1%) were qualitative (77...…”

Impact of ankylosing spondylitis on sexual function: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…1 . One study in which the data were presented as the median (minimum-maximum) was excluded ( 17 ). According to the selection criteria defined in Materials and methods, the meta-analysis finally included five articles, involving a total of 484 participants of which 232 were patients with AS.…”