Prevalence of Venereophobia among Patients of Non-Venereal Genital Conditions- a Cross-Sectional Hospital Based Study from Nepal

Abstract

Background
 Venereophobia is the fear of getting venereal diseases or sexually transmitted diseases. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence and describe the varying clinical pattern of dermatoses among patients with venereophobia in non-venereal genital conditions.
 Materials and Methods
 This was a hospital-based, prospective, cross-sectional observational study conducted in a tertiary center in Kathmandu, Nepal, over a period of one year. A nonprobability purposive convenient sampling technique was used to select the samples. Two hundred patients were enrolled in the study. Ethical approval was taken prior to the study. A detailed history along with a complete cutaneous examination was carried out in all patients and recorded in preformed proforma. Patients with symptoms and clinical signs of sexually transmitted infections were excluded from the study.
 Results
 The prevalence of venereophobia among non-venereal dermatosis was 18%. The mean age of the patient with non-venereal genital dermatosis was 29.5 ± 15 years. The male to female ratio was 17:2. About 72% of the total patients were married. The most common symptoms of patients with venereophobia were genital itching, whereas about 44% were asymptomatic. The common dermatological disorders associated with venereophobia were pearly penile papules, genital vitiligo, irritant contact dermatitis. Three fourth of the patient with venereophobia had multiple sexual exposures.
 Conclusions
 Venereophobia is an important issue to be focused on patients with genital dermatosis and a significant number of patients might have venereophobia even in non-venereal genital dermatoses. A proper genital and psychiatric evaluation might prevent misdiagnosis and complications.

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“…These problems might disseminate to other areas and can later cause complications, disrupting the quality of life. 9 This can lead to mental distress, and a feeling of guilt among patients, leading them to refrain from visiting doctors, and rather seek help from chemists, friends, the internet and so on.…”