BMC Research Notes
Volume 5, 2012

Sexual dysfunction in Assyrian/Syrian immigrants and Swedish-born persons with type 2 diabetes (Article) (Open Access)

Taloyan M.* , Wajngot A. , Johansson S.-E. , Tovi J. , Sundquist K.
  • a Center for Primary Health Care Research, Region Skåne/Lund University, CRC, Jan Waldenströms gata 35, SUS, 205 02 Malmö, Sweden, Stress Research Institute, Stockholm University, SE 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
  • b Karolinska Institutet, Center for Family and Community Medicine, Alfred Nobels allé 12, SE 141 83 Huddinge, Sweden
  • c Center for Primary Health Care Research, Region Skåne/Lund University, CRC, Jan Waldenströms gata 35, SUS, 205 02 Malmö, Sweden, Karolinska Institutet, Center for Family and Community Medicine, Alfred Nobels allé 12, SE 141 83 Huddinge, Sweden
  • d Karolinska Institutet, Center for Family and Community Medicine, Alfred Nobels allé 12, SE 141 83 Huddinge, Sweden
  • e Center for Primary Health Care Research, Region Skåne/Lund University, CRC, Jan Waldenströms gata 35, SUS, 205 02 Malmö, Sweden

Abstract

Background: Few studies have investigated sexual dysfunction in immigrant patients with type 2 diabetes in Sweden. The aim of this study was to examine the association between ethnicity and sexual dysfunction and to analyze if this association remains after adjusting for explanatory variables including age, marital status, HbA1c, triglycerides, and hypertension. This cross-sectional study was conducted at four primary health care centers in the Swedish town of Södertälje. A total of 354 persons with type 2 diabetes (173 Assyrians/Syrians and 181 Swedish-born patients) participated in the survey. The main outcome measure was the self-reported presence of sexual dysfunction based on two questions, one regarding loss of ability to have sexual intercourse and the other loss of sexual desire. Response rates were 78% and 86%, respectively. Findings. The total prevalence of loss of ability to have intercourse was 29.5%. In the multivariate models, the odds of loss of ability to have intercourse was significantly higher in the oldest age group (OR=5.80; 95% CI, 2.33-14.40), in men (OR=3.33; 95% CI, 1.33-8.30), and in unmarried individuals (OR=2.40; 95% CI, 1.02-5.70). The odds of reporting loss of sexual desire was higher in Assyrians/Syrians than in Swedish-born patients and increased from 2.00 in the age- and gender-adjusted model to 2.70 in the fully adjusted model when all confounders were taken into account. Conclusions: Sexual dysfunction appears to be more common in Assyrians/Syrians than in Swedish-born patients. Health care workers should actively ask about sexual function in their patients with type 2 diabetes. © 2012 Taloyan et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

Author Keywords

Sexual dysfunction Diabetes type 2 immigrants Sweden

Index Keywords

non insulin dependent diabetes mellitus Syrian Arab Republic Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 human middle aged Aged ethnology sexual dysfunction Cross-Sectional Studies Sweden cross-sectional study Humans male female Sexual Dysfunction, Physiological Article adult migration Syria Emigration and Immigration pathophysiology
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84866500473&doi=10.1186%2f1756-0500-5-522&partnerID=40&md5=f9003ebe0653852c807b1bedbc5f5e69
DOI: 10.1186/1756-0500-5-522
ISSN: 17560500
Cited by: 3
Original Language: English