The image of sexual expression of female patients suffering from mood disorders: the questionnaire study on Polish clinical sample.

Aim of the study Mood disorders are significantly connected with sexual functioning impairment among women. The aim of this study was to assess and describe specifics of sexual expression and its dysfunc-tion in groups of women diagnosed with bipolar disorders (F31), major depressive disorder (F32 and F33) and persistent mood disorders (F34). Subject or material and methods The sample comprised 129 female patients aged 19-65. Subjects were recruited in the Polish psy-chiatry hospital wards. Patients were interviewed using the sexological questionnaire Mell-Krat (Kromierzyńska’s version) for women (SFK/K) for clinical assessment of patients' mood Mont-gomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), and Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) were used. Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) was also used to control alcohol addiction's influence on sexual functions. Results The mean final score in SFK/K for the whole sample was 35.3 points (SD=15.65), clearly below the cut-off point for the average level of sexual reaction for the Polish population. More than 88.4% of patients achieved scores lower than optimal. Discussion The prevalence of sexual dysfunctions among women suffering from mood disorders is in-creased. However, the image of the sexual expression of those patients is not homogenous. Conclusions The paper put light on the sexual functioning of women with mood disorders. However, further research using more specific methods and bigger samples is needed.