Medicine

Background & Aim: Genito-Pelvic Pain/Penetration Disorder (GPPPD) is one of the leading causes of female sexual dysfunction but not well defined or understood and affects women’s sexual health and satisfaction. The purpose of this study were described the patients’ sexual behaviors before treatment and clinical experience of help-seeking for GPPPD, and compared effectiveness of intensive and weekly Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) on GPPPD. Methodology: 27 patients meeting DSM-5 criteria for GPPPD were enrolled. 14 patients from China who undertook intensive CBT (iCBT- three 1.5 hour sessions over three days) used a comparison group and 13 patients from Taiwan who undertook weekly CBT (wCBT- four 2 hour sessions over 4 weeks). All participants responded to sex history, Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) and Sexual Anxiety Scale (SAS) before the first session and 3-month follow-up after intervention.

Result: The subjects were 31.2 years of age on average and 4.6 years of GPPPD duration. 74.1% were severe and 96.3% were lifelong GPPPD, 60.9% had non-penetrative sex and 29.6% seek for otherwise treated before for CBT intervention. At 3 months of follow up significant improvements found in lubrication (Z=-2.314, p=0.021), sexual satisfaction (Z=-2.694, p=.007), and sexual pain (-3.606, p<0.001). 25.9% had been defined normal female sexual function (FSFI>26.55) and 92.6% had intercourse in the last 1 month. iCBT had no significant reduce in SAS (p=0.374~0.953) and wCBT (p=0.005~0.196).

Conclusion: More than half of the females with GPPPD had non-penetrative sexual behaviors. iCBT and wCBT program had significant effectiveness on reducing sexual pain and improve sexual function in GPPPD. But iCBT cannot offer cognitive restructure enough to reduce sexual anxiety.