The SAD–MEN questionnaire: a new and reliable questionnaire for assessing sexual dysfunction in Asians with diabetes

AIM: The aim of this study is to construct a new tool for the assessment of sexual dysfunction among men with diabetes that is valid and reliable across different ethnicities, languages and socio‐economic backgrounds in South East Asia. METHODS: Focus group interviews were conducted to determine the construct of the questionnaire. Content and face validity were assessed by a panel of experts. A pilot study was conducted to validate the Sexual Dysfunction in Asian Men with Diabetes (SAD–MEN) questionnaire in English and Malay. The International Index of Erectile Function–5 (IIEF–5) was used for comparison. Construct validity was assessed using exploratory factor analysis, reliability was determined using Cronbach's α (> 0.700), and test–retest reliability using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. RESULTS: The SAD–MEN questionnaire yielded moderate face and content validity, with high reliability as shown by Cronbach's α values of 0.949 for sexual performance and 0.775 for sexual desire for the English version. The Malay language questionnaire had a Cronbach's α value of 0.945 for sexual performance and 0.750 for sexual desire. Test–retest reliability using Spearman's test gave correlation coefficients of r = 0.853, P = 0.000 for the English language questionnaire and r = 0.908, P = 0.000 for the Malay language questionnaire. CONCLUSION: The SAD–MEN questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool by which to assess sexual dysfunction in English‐ and Malay‐speaking Malaysian and South East Asian men with diabetes.