Dataset Information

"I want to feel like I used to feel": a qualitative study of causes of low libido in postmenopausal women.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Low libido is common among women over 60 and negatively impacts well-being and relationship satisfaction. Causes of low libido in this age group are not well understood. We used qualitative methods to explore older women's perceptions of causes of low libido.

Methods

We conducted 15 individual interviews and 3 focus groups (total N = 36) among sexually active women 60 and older who screened positive for low libido using a validated instrument. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and coded using a codebook developed by two investigators. Codes were examined, and themes related to causes of low libido emerged.

Results

Women noted a number of different factors that contributed to low libido. The common factors that women discussed included postmenopausal vaginal symptoms, erectile dysfunction in male partners, fatigue and bodily pain, life stressors, and body image concerns. Women often found ways to adapt to these factors. These adaptations required open communication between partners regarding sex, and some women noted these conversations were difficult or not successful.

Conclusions

A wide variety of factors contribute to low libido in women over 60, but many of these factors are addressable. Low libido in older women should not be automatically attributed to "normal" aging or to menopause; providers should take an approach to assessment and treatment that addresses biological, interpersonal and social, and psychological factors. : Video Summary: http://links.lww.com/MENO/A499.

SUBMITTER: Thomas HN

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7047535 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

"I want to feel like I used to feel": a qualitative study of causes of low libido in postmenopausal women.

Thomas Holly N HN Hamm Megan M Hess Rachel R Borrero Sonya S Thurston Rebecca C RC

Menopause (New York, N.Y.) 20200301 3

<h4>Objective</h4>Low libido is common among women over 60 and negatively impacts well-being and relationship satisfaction. Causes of low libido in this age group are not well understood. We used qualitative methods to explore older women's perceptions of causes of low libido.<h4>Methods</h4>We conducted 15 individual interviews and 3 focus groups (total N = 36) among sexually active women 60 and older who screened positive for low libido using a validated instrument. Interviews were audio-recor ...[more]

PMID: 31834161

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Project description:Title: Transcriptome analysis of human endometrial tissues from healthy post-menoupausal women reflecting the endometrial response to 3-weeks treatment with tibolone, E2 and E2+MPA. In an observational, open, non-randomized, controlled study uterine tissues were collected in order to generate endometrial gene expression profiles. healthy postmenopausal women were enrolled into the following treatment groups: Control-group; Tibolone-group, 2,5 mg of tibolone (administered orally) every day, starting 21 days prior to surgery; Estradiol-group, 2 mg of estradiol (administered orally) every day, starting 21 days prior to surgery; Estradiol+progestagen-group, 2 mg of estradiol (administered orally) and 5 mg of MPA (Medroxy Progesteroneacetate, administered orally) every day, starting 21 days prior to surgery. Pure (100%) endometrium was isolated from the snap-frozen uterine tissues and used for RNA isolation. RNA was labeled and hybridized to whole genome Affymetrix U133plus2 GeneChips containing 54,614 probe sets, representing approximately 47,000 transcripts. Relative to the control group, 940 genes are regulated in the endometrium of E2 treated patients, whereas only 198 genes are significantly regulated in endometria from tibolone or E2+MPA treated patients. Furthermore, only 9% of E2 regulated genes are also regulated by tibolone (85 out of 940), only 5% are also regulated by E2+MPA treatment and the overlap between tibolone and E2+MPA treatment is about 10%. This indicated that tibolone-treatment results in a weak endometrial profile similarity to E2 treatment and no profile similarity to E2+MPA treatment. A more detailed analysis showed that down stream processes, such as regulation of the cell cycle, angiogenesis and cell proliferation are almost not affected by tibolone treatment but, in contrast, are significantly affected by E2. For example, upon staining with Ki67, a marker for mitotic activity, significantly increased stromal as well as glandular cell proliferation was observed in the endometria from the E2-only treated group, while tibolone treatment resulted only in a slight increase in stromal cell proliferation (and no increase in glandular cell proliferation). These results indicate that in contrast to long-term tibolone use, short-term (21-days) use results in some estrogenic stimulation of the endometrium, which is clearly far less and rather different from what is observed during E2 treatment. References: Klaassens et al., 2006 Hanifi-Moghaddam et al., 2007 Verheul et al., 2007

Dataset Information

"I want to feel like I used to feel": a qualitative study of causes of low libido in postmenopausal women.

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

"I want to feel like I used to feel": a qualitative study of causes of low libido in postmenopausal women.

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