Does THA Affect Sexual Dysfunction in Female Patients With DDH?

Abstract

BackgroundSexual health, aside from reproduction, plays an important role in physical, intellectual, emotional and social facets of life. Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) is a chronic orthopedic disease that has negative physical, social, and mental/spiritual effects, and lowers quality of life. However, no studies exist in the literature that focus on sexual function and health in patients with DDH. MethodsThe preoperative and postoperative 6th month and 1st year sexual functions of women who underwent surgical treatment (total hip arthroplasty) for DDH (Crowe 1–4) (n:50) and their spouses (n:30) were evaluated with Arizona Sexual Experience scale (ASEX) questionnaire which evaluates sexual function in 5 categories such as desire, arousal, erection/lubrication, orgasm, and satisfaction. ResultsThe ASEX scores were 22.3 ± 3.5 preoperatively, 17.8 ± 2 at the 6th postoperative month, and 14.8 ± 1.3 at the 1st postoperative year. The decrease in the average score showed that sexual dysfunction existed in the preoperative period and sexual function was positively affected in the postoperative period over time. The ASEX scores of the patients younger than 35 in the postoperative 6th month had higher scores (P = .29). The sexual life of the husbands was not affected by the wives’ surgery, even though their spouses had a chronic condition causing functional difficulties. ConclusionThis study showed that the sexual life of women with DDH, who had been treated with total hip arthroplasty, was positively affected, whereas their husbands were unaffected. Further studies focusing on the effect of physiological and emotional factors, in addition to the surgical treatment, on sexual function are needed.