BACKGROUND Sexual function is a component of quality of life, and sexual dysfunction entails reduced satisfaction with life and impaired mood and quality of relationships and affects not only the individual's quality of life, but her partner's life as well. Since Sexual Dysfunction (SD) is among the most common complaints of patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), this study was conducted to determine the prevalence of SD among women with MS and its effect on quality of life. MATERIALS AND METHODS This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2018 on 300 women with MS aged 22-50 years in Isfahan, Iran, selected through systematic random sampling. Data were collected using the standard Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) and MSQOL-54 and analyzed in SPSS using descriptive and analytical statistics. RESULTS The overall prevalence of SD was found as 69.8% in women with MS, with the dimension of sexual desire being affected in 38.6% of the cases, sexual arousal in 38.6%, lubrication in 23.7%, orgasm in 37.3%, satisfaction in 23.4% and pain in 16.9%. SD was found to have significant relationships with age, duration of marriage, fatigue, EDSS and the combined physical and mental health aspects of quality of life (P <  0.05). Moreover, logistic regression analysis revealed that there was a higher probability of a sexual dysfunction among patients with MS and a high fatigue score [1.228(1.003 to 1.504); P = 0.047]. The mean score of the combined physical and mental health aspects of quality of life was lower in the group of women with MS and SD compared to those without SD, and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P <  0.05). CONCLUSION Sexual dysfunction is highly prevalent among women with MS and affects various dimensions of quality of life. Greater attention should be paid to the sexual problems faced by MS patients in order to improve their quality of life.

中文翻译：

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多发性硬化症女性的性功能障碍：患病率及其对生活质量的影响。

背景技术性功能是生活质量的组成部分，性功能障碍导致人们对生活的满意度降低，情绪和关系质量下降，不仅影响个人的生活质量，还影响其伴侣的生活。由于性功能障碍（SD）是多发性硬化症（MS）患者最常见的主诉，因此本研究旨在确定MS患者中SD的患病率及其对生活质量的影响。材料与方法这项横断面研究于2018年在伊朗伊斯法罕（Isfahan）对300名22-50岁的MS患者进行了系统性随机抽样选择。使用标准女性性功能指数（FSFI）和MSQOL-54收集数据，并使用描述性和分析性统计数据在SPSS中进行分析。结果MS患者的SD总体患病率为69.8％，其中性欲维度受到影响的比例为38.6％，性唤起的比例为38.6％，润滑的比例为23.7％，性高潮的比例为37.3％，满意度的比例为23.4 ％和16.9％的疼痛。发现SD与年龄，婚姻持续时间，疲劳，EDSS以及生活质量综合的身心健康有显着关系（P <0.05）。此外，逻辑回归分析显示，MS患者发生性功能障碍的可能性更高，并且疲劳评分较高[1.228（1.003至1.504）；P = 0.047]。患有MS和SD的女性群体的生活质量在身心健康方面的综合得分低于没有SD的女性，两组之间的差异具有统计学意义（P <0.05）。结论性功能障碍在多发性硬化症女性中非常普遍，并影响生活质量的各个方面。为了改善他们的生活质量，应该更加重视MS患者所面临的性问题。