Case-control study, 2010
Does PMS affect sexual satisfaction?
Yes. Women with PMS reported less sexual satisfaction and more sexual distress than women without it, though PMDD alone did not show the same clear difference.
What they did
Researchers surveyed 2,500 Polish women aged 18 to 45 about their periods and sex lives. After applying eligibility rules, 1,540 women were included, split into a PMS group (749) and a healthy group (791), plus a smaller matched comparison between 32 women with PMDD and 32 without.
What they found
77.73% of women with PMS were sexually satisfied versus 88.66% of those without PMS (P=0.001). More women with PMS reported sexual distress, 28.65% versus 15.24% (P=0.001). PMS remained linked to lower sexual satisfaction even after adjusting for other factors (odds ratio 0.48, confidence interval 0.26-0.89, P=0.02). There was no significant difference in sexual satisfaction between the PMDD and non-PMDD groups.
What it means for you
PMS appears to be a real risk factor for feeling less satisfied sexually, at least in this group of Polish women. The study only looked at one region of Poland and relied on questionnaires, and it could not prove that PMS directly causes the lower satisfaction, only that the two are linked.
77.73% vs 88.66%
Sexually satisfied with PMS vs without
28.65% vs 15.24%
Reported sexual distress with PMS vs without
0.48
Odds ratio for lower satisfaction with PMS
About the study
- Original title
- Sexual satisfaction in females with premenstrual symptoms
- Authors
- Nowosielski K, Drosdzol A, Skrzypulec V et al.
- Journal
- The journal of sexual medicine
- Year
- 2010
- Study design
- Case-control study
- Participants
- 2,500
- What was tested
- None tested; this was an observational survey comparing women with and without PMS/PMDD
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1111/j.1743-6109.2010.01927.x
Topics
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