Comparison of pre and postoperative sexual dysfunction in male patients with lumbar disc herniation

AIM The study was conducted to compare pre and postoperative sexual dysfunction in male patients diagnosed with Lumbar Disc Herniation (LDH). MATERIAL AND METHODS This study was carried out in a single group with a pre-test/post-test design. The sample included 32 male patients with LDH admitted to the Neurosurgery Outpatient Clinic of a State Hospital between 01 August 2019 and 01 November 2020 and who were planned to be operated. The data were collected using a questionnaire form developed by the researchers, the Golombok-Rust Inventory of Sexual Satisfaction (GRISS), and the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Descriptive statistical methods, Mann Whitney-U test, Wilcoxon test, and Spearman correlation analysis were used to evaluate the data. Significance was evaluated at the p 0.05 level. RESULTS Before LDH surgery, male patients had problems with sub-dimensions of sexual functions such as frequency, communication, avoidance, touching, impotence, and premature ejaculation. A significant improvement was achieved after the operation in the communication sub-dimension and pain levels. The mean pre and postoperative VAS scores of the patients were 8.18±1.20 and 1.28±1.08, respectively. CONCLUSION Lumbar disc surgery has a positive effect on sexual functions and reduces pain levels. Since there is a strong relationship between LDH and sexual dysfunction, taking a sexual history from patients should be a part of routine medical history, and psychiatric care and consultation is recommended if needed.