Abstract
Research in partners of men with erectile dysfunction suggests that a woman's sexual difficulties can be contingent on her partner's sexual dysfunction. However, little research has been conducted in partners of men with other sexual dysfunctions, such as premature ejaculation (PE). We evaluated 139 partners of men diagnosed with having PE and 89 age-matched women whose partners did not have any sexual dysfunction. Results showed that 77.7% of PE partners had at least one sexual dysfunction, compared to 42.7% of the control group. Further research needs to be undertaken to investigate the temporal relationship between sexual dysfunctions in both partners.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 8 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $32.38 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Althof SE . Prevalence, characteristics and implications of premature ejaculation/rapid ejaculation. J Urol 2006; 175: 842–848.
Laumann EO, Paik A, Rosen RC . Sexual dysfunction in the US. JAMA 1999; 281: 537–544.
Spector IP, Carey MP . Incidence and prevalence of sexual dysfunctions: a critical review of the empirical literature. Arch Sex Behav 1990; 19: 389–408.
Riley A, Riley E . Premature ejaculation: presentation and associations. An audit of patients. Int J Clin Pract 2005; 59: 1482–1487.
Byers ES, Grenier G . Premature or rapid ejaculation: heterosexual couples' perceptions of men's ejaculatory behaviour. Arch Sex Behav 2003; 32: 261–270.
Giuliano F, Patrick DL, Porst H, La Pera G, Kokoszka A, Merchant S et al. Premature ejaculation: results from a five-country European observational study. Eur Urol 2008; 53: 1048–1057.
McCabe MP . Intimacy and quality of life among sexually dysfunctional men and women. J Sex Marital Ther 1997; 23: 276–290.
Patrick DL, Althof SE, Pryor JL, Rosen R, Rowland DL, Fai K et al. Premature ejaculation: an observational study of men and their partners. J Sex Med 2005; 2: 358–367.
Hisasue S, Kumamoto Y, Sato Y, Masumori N, Horita H, Kato R et al. Prevalence of female sexual dysfunction symptoms and its relationship to quality of life: a Japanese female cohort study. Urology 2005; 65: 143–148.
Nicolosi A, Glasser DB, Kim SC, Marumo K, Laumann EO . Sexual behaviour and dysfunctions and help seeking patterns in adults aged 40–80 years in the urban population of Asian countries. BJU Int 2004; 95: 609–614.
Abdo CHN, Olivera WM, Moreira ED, Fittipaldi JAS . Prevalence of sexual dysfunctions and correlated conditions in a sample of Brazillian women—results of the Brazillian study on sexual behaviour (BSSB). Int J Impot Res 2004; 16: 160–166.
Hayes RD, Bennett CM, Fairley CK, Dennerstein L . What can prevalence studies tell us about female sexual difficulty and dysfunction. J Sex Med 2006; 3: 589–595.
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition Text Revision: DSM-IV-TR. American Psychiatric Association: Washington DC, 2000.
Cayan S, Bozlu M, Canpolat B, Akbay E . The assessment of sexual functions in women with male partners complaining of erectile dysfunction: does treatment of male sexual dysfunction improve female partner's sexual functions? J Sex Marital Ther 2004; 30: 333–341.
Greenstein A, Abramov L, Matzkin H, Chen J . Sexual dysfunction in women partners of men with erectile dysfunction. Int J Impot Res 2006; 18: 44–46.
Fisher WA, Rosen RC, Eardley I, Sand M, Goldstein I . Sexual experience of female partners or men with erectile dysfunction: the female experience of men's attitudes to life events and sexuality (FEMALES) study. J Sex Med 2005; 2: 675–684.
Montorsi F, Althof SE . Partner response to sildenafil citrate (Viagra) treatment of erectile dysfunction. Urology 2004; 63: 762–767.
Heiman JR, Talley DR, Bailen JL, Oskin TA, Rosenberg SJ, Pace CR et al. Sexual function and satisfaction in heterosexual couples when men are adminsitered sildenafil citrate (Viagra) for erectile dysfunction: a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 2007; 114: 437–447.
Goldstein I, Fisher WA, Sand M, Rosen RC, Mollen M, Brock G et al. Women's sexual function improves when partners are administered vardenafil for erectile dysfunction: a prospective, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. J Sex Med 2005; 2: 819–832.
Althof SE, Levine SB, Kursh ED . Through the eyes of women: the sexual and psychological responses of women to their partner's treatment with self-injection or external vacuum therapy. Urology 1992; 147: 1024–1027.
Althof SE, Levine SB, Corty EW, Risen CB, Stern EB, Kurit DM . A double-blind crossover trial of clomipramine for rapid ejaculation in 15 couples. J Clin Psychiatry 1995; 56: 402–407.
Symonds T, Perelman MA, Althof S, Giuliano F, Martin M, May K et al. Development and validation of a premature ejaculation diagnostic tool. Eur Urol 2007a; 52: 565–573.
Symonds T, Perelman MA, Althof S, Giuliano F, Martin M, May K et al. Further evidence of the reliability and validity of the premature ejaculation diagnostic tool. Int J Impot Res 2007b; 19: 521–525.
Quirk F, Haughie S, Symonds T . The use of the sexual function questionnaire as a screening tool for women with sexual dysfunction. J Sex Med 2005; 2: 469–477.
Quirk FH, Heiman JR, Rosen RC, Lann E, Smith MD, Boolell M . Development of a sexual function questionnaire for clinical trials of female sexual dysfunction. J Womens Health 2002; 11: 277–289.
Abraham L, Althof SE, Bushnell DM, Martin ML, May K, Symonds T . Psychometric validation of a sexual satisfaction measure for female partners of men with premature ejaculation (PE): PE Partner Satisfaction Index (PEP-SI). Proceedings of International Society for the Study of Women's Sexual Health Annual Meeting; 9–12 March 2006; Lisbon, Portugal.
Symonds T, Boolell M, Quirk F . Development of a questionnaire on sexual quality of life in women. J Sex Marital Ther 2005; 31: 385–397.
Abraham L, Symonds T, May KM, Martin ML, Goodman J, Althof SE et al. A methodology study (without drug treatment) to reduce the number of items, and psychometrically validate the Sexual Relationship Scale (SRS). Pfizer Internal Report, Pfizer Ltd: UK, 2003.
Acknowledgements
We thank Sandra Leiblum, Cindy Meston, John Mulhall, Eileen Palace, José Pomerol, Rick Sadovsky, Ridwan Shabsigh and Miki Weider for conducting the diagnostic interviews with the male partners of the women participating in this study. We also thank Health Research Associates Inc. for coordinating the recruitment of the participants in this study. This research was funded by Pfizer Ltd, UK.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
NB: The following measures—ASFQ, PEP-SI, SQOL-F, SRS, PE diagnostic tool—are all available for use upon request.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hobbs, K., Symonds, T., Abraham, L. et al. Sexual dysfunction in partners of men with premature ejaculation. Int J Impot Res 20, 512–517 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijir.2008.34
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ijir.2008.34
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Prilocaine/lidocaine spray for the treatment of premature ejaculation: a dose- and time-finding study for clinical practice use
International Journal of Impotence Research (2023)
-
Risk factors of premature ejaculation and its influence on sexual function of spouse
Basic and Clinical Andrology (2021)
-
Redefining a sexual medicine paradigm: subclinical premature ejaculation as a new taxonomic entity
Nature Reviews Urology (2021)
-
Treating Comorbid Sexual Dysfunctions Using the Intersystem Sex Therapy Approach
Contemporary Family Therapy (2021)
-
The relationship between female sexual function index domains and premature ejaculation
International Urology and Nephrology (2018)