Female Sexual Dysfunction Among Egyptian Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C

IntroductionChronic hepatitis C is associated with many extrahepatic manifestations that impact and impair the quality of life. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has a high prevalence in Egypt and carries with the diagnosis many social impacts and stigmatization correlates that further impair social function. This might negatively impact patients and their sexual function. Sexuality and sexual function have not been studied well in patients with HCV, especially in women. AimTo investigate sexual dysfunction in Egyptian women with chronic hepatitis C. Main Outcome MeasuresFemale Sexual Function Index (FSFI) scores of patients with hepatitis C, both total and for individual domains, were compared with those of controls. MethodsThe self-administered FSFI questionnaire was completed by 112 sexually active female patients with chronic hepatitis C without liver cirrhosis prior to initiation of therapy by pegylated interferon and ribavirin. Their results were compared to those of 225 age- and socioeconomic class-matched sexually active healthy females. ResultsSignificantly more patients than controls had questionnaire scores below the threshold of female sexual dysfunction (FSD) (79% vs. 21%, P<0.05), and the mean total score for the patients was significantly lower than that for controls (19.546.2 vs. 28.43 +/- 4.9 P<0.001). The patients' scores in all domains of the questionnaire were significantly lower than those of the controls. ConclusionChronic hepatitis C negatively impacts female sexual function, affecting all domains of the sex cycle; this warrants further studies and needs to be addressed as part of a comprehensive therapy plan to improve patients' quality of life. Elshimi E, Morad W, Mohamad NE, Shebl N, and Waked I. Female sexual dysfunction among Egyptian patients with chronic hepatitis C. J Sex Med 2014;11:768-775.