Female Sexual Dysfunction

Female Sexual Dysfunction (FSD) is a term that covers a number of specific conditions. A few medical academics have even published articles which suggest that there is no such thing as FSD but there are millions of women who would vehemently disagree.

To dismiss FSD as a cynical ploy by drug companies to get women to take medication is an interesting avenue of thought but with so many women complaining of the symptoms of FSD (low libido, inability to have an orgasm and pain during intercourse) surely it is an area that deserves further investigation. If there are medical solutions, is it not right that these are developed? After all, products like Viagra have revolutionised the sex lives of millions of men so why should women not also benefit from similar medical advances?

Evidence for FSD

A recent survey of women aged 18-59 found that the most common sexual problem in women is hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD), more commonly referred to as low sex drive or libido, followed by difficulty with orgasm. Pain during intercourse, which occurs in 14.4% of women, was the only condition to show a relationship to age: it decreases as women get older. The total population sample showed that 43% of women had suffered from one form of sexual dysfunction or another.

HSDD is a deficiency or absence of desire for sexual activity. According to the survey, 37% of women think about sex a few times a month and only 33% think about sex 2-3 times a week or more. Happier women seem to think about sex more often than unhappy women.

Difficulty with orgasm, or female orgasmic disorder, is a persistent delay or absence of orgasm. The survey discovered that 29% of women say they always have orgasms during sex and 40% say they are physically satisfied with their partners.

What causes decreased sexual desire in women?

Low sex drive can be caused by a range of factors, which vary from one individual to the next. Fatigue and many possible psychological causes can impact a woman's sexual appetite. It is also known that certain health conditions and medications can affect a woman's sexual desire. Depression and anxiety disorders can interfere with sexual desire, but so can some of the drugs used to treat these conditions.

Birth control pills, mood stabilizers, tranquilizers and other medications have been shown to decrease libido. If you notice a drop in your sexual desire around the time you start a new medication, talk to your doctor to see if there is a connection.

The menopause can cause a change in the way that a woman feels about sex. Similarly, the removal of the ovaries can have an impact on a woman’s sexual desire as it is the ovaries that produce the sex hormones. It is possible that a lack of sexual desire is associated with a testosterone deficiency.

The Role of Testosterone in Female Sexual Desire

When we think of testosterone we usually think of this androgen as a male hormone. However, testosterone is also one of six hormones produced by the female reproductive organs. Androgens are produced naturally by the ovaries and the adrenal glands. Testosterone is an important factor in women's health before and after menopause.

Testosterone provides several benefits to women:

• improves relief of vasomotor symptoms of menopause
• increases energy levels
• enhances feelings of well-being
• decreases breast tenderness
• improves sexual desire
• increases sexual sensitivity
• enhances orgasm

The use of androgen therapy may be beneficial to women who experience loss of libido and other symptoms of testosterone deficiency during natural menopause or following a surgically induced menopause. A new product called Intinsa has recently been licensed in the UK for this purpose. The Online Clinic is prepared to prescribe Intrinsa to certain women who suffer from low libido.

If you would like to register for a consultation for Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder, please click on the Free Consultation icon below. However, before you start out on a course of treatment you should understand that sexual responses vary between women and within each individual and concerns about sex are very common. Some sexual problems, while distressing, may reflect normal variations in a woman's life and should not be categorised as a "dysfunction.".