| 1 Room 518 | Sexuality and Health Friday, July 15, 2005 Time: 8:30 AM-10:30 AM |
The sexual and affective life of with important diagnoses.
Lucia Rosa, Cantafio*,1, Alessandro, Bartoletti *,, Nicoletta, Suppa*,, Francesca Romana, Tiberi*,, 1 Sexologist, Roma, Italy, Italy
ABSTRACT- Our up to date research inherent the sexual and affective life of people with invalidant diseases has shown a partially lack of data. However, it has form the hypothesis that there is a correlation between the quality of life and the terapeutic response to treatmens. The authors have set up the drawing of a multiple response questionary concerning the affective and sexuality life of people affected by such invalidant disesases.. In particular the research was focused on multiple sclerosis (MS). This choice was suggested by the peculiarity of MS wich determinates three mainly dysfunctions, of sexual disorders: primary, secondary and tertiary. The primary disorders derived from the neurological changes, are concernig the demielizating lesions in the cerebral centers, directly responsables for the sexual function. Secondary one are caused by both physical symptoms due to MS that change indirectly the sexual response, and relationship problems. The last one are concernig the psychological and social consequences implied in some diagnosis. Our hypothesis is that the mainly changes in patients affected by MS concernig the tertiary sexual disorders. The protocol was draw as a two arms protocol: the first one comprised 350 patients affected by MS, and the second, comprised 350 oncological patients as a control arm. Our preliminary data seems to indicate in the arm comprising people affected by MS, a drop in both the frequency and in level of sexual satisfaction. Final data are pending and will published. Oher very intersting data in MS arm suggest some correlation between the sexual and/or affective life and social/cultural level in people with the same level of disease. According to medical neurologist cooperating with us, further investigations will be drawn to better understand the correlation between the quality of life related to the response at the therapies.
Key words: affectivity, multiple sclerosis, oncology, sexuality, dysfunction