Iranian Men’s Sexual Life Issues After Their Wives’ Burn: A Qualitative Content Analysis Study

Abstract

Physical and psychological complications of burn injuries reduce the victims' sexual quality of life and challenge their partners’ sexual satisfaction. There is no information about men’s sexual issues and behaviors. Previous studies did not address the impact of women's burns on their husbands' sexual lives. Therefore, this qualitative study aimed to characterize the sexual experiences of Iranian men after their wives' burns. The study was performed on 16 men with surviving spouses of major burn using criterion-based purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were analyzed using a qualitative content analysis approach. The results showed men's sexual issues with three main themes and eight sub-themes: (I) sexual desire restrictors (annoying scars, imposing roles, and wives' sexual coldness), (II) degradation of marital sex (reduced frequency of sexual intercourses, temptation of extramarital affairs), (III) effort to maintain sex (sexual self-sacrifice, sexual pretending, sexual precautions). According to men’s experiences, female sexual coldness, temptation for extramarital affairs, and sexual pretense were related to couples’ poor knowledge of sexual discourse. Thus, health professionals can use Context-oriented educational program to promote the couples’ sexual knowledge and health after burns.