TY  - JOUR
TI  - INFLUENCE OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON SEXUAL LIFE:
WHAT IS THE SITUATION IN AN URBAN REGION OF
TURKEY?
AB  - Objectives: It was aimed to evaluate the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on couples' sexual life and to
investigate whether any difficulties were faced in supplying the proper counseling in family planning.
Materials and Methods: Volunteers who attend to family medicine outpatient clinic were recruited in the
study to complete a cross-sectional online survey. Participants were asked to sociodemographic
characteristics, used family planning methods, difficulty in accessing the method, development of unplanned
pregnancy, Covid infection of the spouses, and retrospectively report their sexual behavior frequency, desire,
and relationship satisfaction during and before the pandemic. Then International Index of Erectile Function
(IIEF), and the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) were administered.
Results: A total of 195 volunteers whose mean age was 40±7.94 participated in the study. Difficulty in
accessing family planning methods was 3.59%, and the unintended pregnancy rate was 57.14%. Sexual
intercourse frequency was once a month or less for 17.95% and once a week or more for 67.18%. A decrease
in sexual intercourse was observed in 33.33%. Erectile dysfunction was detected in 68.92%. Sexual dysfunction
was found in 52.07% of the women. The mean FSFI score was 23.77 ± 8.27, while the median IIEF score was
60. The frequency of sexual intercourse, and change in sexual desire were not influenced by Covid-19
pandemic.
Conclusion: Sexual life in both genders was not regressed, but access to methods and counseling about family
planning was negatively affected by Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, unintended pregnancies were observed at
higher rates even in a highly educated population during the Covid-19 pandemic.
AU  - NEMMEZİ KARACA, SANEM
AU  - Kurt, Begum
DO  - 10.5505/amj.2022.64614
PY  - 2022
JO  - Ankara Medical Journal
VL  - 22
IS  - 2
SN  - 1303-2283
SP  - 215
EP  - 229
DB  - TRDizin
UR  - http://search/yayin/detay/534350
ER  -