Sexual functions in women with bipolar disorder and their healthy spouses

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the sexual problem levels of female patients with bipolar disorder (BD) and their healthy spouses with those of healthy couples and to investigate potential factors that predict sexual problems. Methods: Sixty female outpatients with BD in remission and their healthy spouses were included in the study. All patients were under medication. Forty-five healthy couples comprised the control group. All participants were examined on a variety of clinical measures, including depression, marital adjustment, and sexual satisfaction. Results: Sexual satisfaction, communication and anorgasmia problems were higher for patients than for female controls. Sexual intercourse frequency, communication and total sexual problems were higher for patients’ spouses than for male controls. Logistic regression analyses for females revealed that sexual satisfaction was associated with age, depressive symptoms, and marital adjustment rather than presence of disorder. The sexual satisfaction was associated with marital adjustment rather than being spouse of a patient for males. Conclusions: After controlling for confounding factors, sexual problems of patients and their spouses are similiar to those of controls. Treating the subsyndromal depressive symptoms of patients and using interventions to increase marital adjustment may improve the sexual functions of both patients and their spouses.