Sexual Behaviours among the Elderly Population in Osun State, Southwestern Nigeria

The population of the elderly and older persons worldwide has increased over time as demographic transition thickens. In Nigeria, whereas, most interventional efforts are geared towards prioritizing and protecting youth sexuality, very little or no attention is being given to the sexuality of the elderly. The objective of this study therefore was to determine sexual behaviors among the elderly population in Osogbo, southwestern Nigeria.

This was a community based descriptive cross-sectional study carried out in 2016 among 491 eligible elderly respondents drawn from a simple random sample of five clusters. Research instrument was interviewer administered semi-structured and pretested questionnaire. Bivariate analysis using chi-square test was used to examine association between categorical variables at 5% level of significance. Responses were analyzed using the SPSS software version 21.0.

Mean age in years of respondents was 66.9 ±7.3 SD, 106 (21.6%) were males, 78 (15.9%) have had sex within the last 12 months, 25.9% had high sexual risk behavior while 45 (9.2%) described themselves as still sexually active. Major predictors of having sexual intercourse within the past 12 months and self-reported of being sexually active include; living with spouse, having low educational status, currently taking alcohol, having a regular source of income and being a male, p < 0.05 in each case.

The elderly age group is still sexually active to varying levels, thus stressing the importance of prioritizing elderly sexual health as part of a holistic and comprehensive geriatric care programmes.