Sexual distress during pregnancy tied to multiple factors
13 giờ trước
Sexual distress is common among pregnant women and is associated with different sociodemographic, obstetric, cultural, individual, and sexuality-related factors, reports a study.
A team of investigators performed a systematic review and meta-analysis. Two reviewers conducted an independent literature search from October 2022 to January 2026 across multiple databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, PsycINFO, EBSCO, Turkish Medline, Turkiye Klinikleri, DOAJ, ULAKBIM-EKUAL, and the National Thesis Center.
The PIOS framework was used to determine study eligibility, and the Joanna Briggs Institute checklists were used to assess methodological quality.
Six studies involving a total of 4,295 participants met the eligibility criteria. The pooled prevalence of sexual distress during pregnancy was 34.9 percent (95 percent confidence interval, 27.9‒42.7; p<0.001; I2, 95.1 percent).
Sexual distress among pregnant women was significantly associated with sociodemographic factors (eg, age, education level, duration of marriage/relationship, and region of residence) and obstetric factors (eg, number of children, parity, gestational week, pregnancy intention, pregnancy-related complaints, and adequacy of antenatal care).
Sexual distress during pregnancy also correlated with sexuality-related factors (eg, frequency of sexual intercourse, sexual function, sexual desire and satisfaction, perceiving intercourse as unsafe, fear of intercourse, sexual myths, fear of miscarriage, and sexual violence) and psychological factors (eg, stress, anxiety, and depression during pregnancy; body image satisfaction before and during pregnancy; and relationship quality and satisfaction with the partner).
Furthermore, factors such as region of residence, marriage by choice, satisfaction with the marital relationship, prepregnancy sexual life, sexual satisfaction and desire during pregnancy, and receiving information/education about sexuality during pregnancy were also predictive of sexual distress.
“Assessing sexual distress during antenatal care may help support sexual well-being during pregnancy,” the investigators said.