Prevalence of Sexual Dysfunction and its Associated Factors among Women with Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 at Makati Medical Center Outpatient Department

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to determine the prevalence of sexual dysfunction among premenopausal Filipino women with type 2 diabetes mellitus at the outpatient department of a tertiary hospital through the use of the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) and identify factors that could be associated with sexual dysfunction. METHODOLOGY: Seventy-five women with type 2 diabetes mellitus, aged 38 to 49 years old, received the FSFI questionnaire. Their age, history of hypertension, smoking habit, alcohol intake, body mass index, waist circumference, fasting blood sugar, HbA(1c), creatinine, lipid profile, albuminuria or proteinuria, presence of microvascular complications such as diabetic retinopathy, neuropathy and nephropathy and their association with sexual dysfunction was determined. RESULTS: Seventy-two percent of the participants have sexual dysfunction scoring lowest in the lubrication, orgasm and pain domains. Age (p=0.016), a high body mass index (p=0.001), a fasting blood sugar above 100 mg/dl (p=0.006) and the presence of microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus namely, retinopathy (p=0.046) nephropathy (p=0.004) and neuropathy (p=0.001) were associated with sexual dysfunction. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of sexual dysfunction is high among premenopausal Filipino women with type 2 diabetes mellitus, and is associated with age, a high body mass index, an uncontrolled fasting blood sugar and the presence of microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus.