The Sexual Function of Iranian Pregnant Women: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Contex: 

Sexual function during pregnancy affects martial satisfaction of couples and increases empathy in the completion of pregnancy and women’s self-confidence with reduction in fears. Studies on the sexual function of Iranian pregnant women have shown controversial results. The present study aimed to review the sexual function of Iranian pregnant women.

The international and national databases of Web of Science/ISI, PubMed, Scopus, MagIran, and SID databases using “sex”, “sexuality”, “sexual intercourse”, “sexual function”, “sexual dysfunction”, and “pregnancy” without a time limit. We included all the papers published in Persian and English reporting the mean score of sexual function of pregnant women. Based on the pre-designed form, the required data included the name of the first authors, year of publication, sample size, research setting, questionnaire type, and methodological quality, which were extracted and recorded. Data analysis was performed in STATA version 14 using a meta-analysis method and random-effects models. The heterogeneity of the studies was evaluated utilizing the I2 test.

In total, 11 articles with the total sample size of 2,657 were reviewed. The highest and lowest standard scores of sexual function were reported in the first pregnancy trimester (58.92%; 95% CI: 54.08-63.75) and the third trimester (47.70%; 95% CI: 23.18-39.56), respectively. In addition, publication bias was significant in the first (P=0.001), second (P=0.009), and third trimesters (P=0.014).

The sexual function of women was found to reduce through pregnancy progress. Therefore, sexual function assessment and counseling on pregnancy care seem crucial for pregnant women.