Sexuality among middle-aged and older adults with diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes: a national, population-based study.
OBJECTIVE
To describe sexual activity, behavior, and problems among middle-age and older adults by diabetes status.


METHODS
This was a substudy of 1,993 community-residing adults, aged 57-85 years, from a cross-sectional, nationally representative sample (N = 3,005). In-home interviews, observed medications, and A1C were used to stratify by diagnosed diabetes, undiagnosed diabetes, or no diabetes. Logistic regression was used to model associations between diabetes conditions and sexual characteristics, separately by gender.


RESULTS
The survey response rate was 75.5%. More than 60% of partnered individuals with diagnosed diabetes were sexually active. Women with diagnosed diabetes were less likely than men with diagnosed diabetes (adjusted odds ratio 0.28 [95% CI 0.16-0.49]) and other women (0.63 [0.45-0.87]) to be sexually active. Partnered sexual behaviors did not differ by gender or diabetes status. The prevalence of orgasm problems was similarly elevated among men with diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes compared with that for other men, but erectile difficulties were elevated only among men with diagnosed diabetes (2.51 [1.53 to 4.14]). Women with undiagnosed diabetes were less likely to have discussed sex with a physician (11%) than women with diagnosed diabetes (19%) and men with undiagnosed (28%) or diagnosed (47%) diabetes.


CONCLUSIONS
Many middle-age and older adults with diabetes are sexually active and engage in sexual behaviors similarly to individuals without diabetes. Women with diabetes were more likely than men to cease all sexual activity. Older women with diabetes are as likely to have sexual problems but are significantly less likely than men to discuss them.
Lindau
Stacy Tessler
ST
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Program for Integrative Sexual Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA. slindau@uchicago.edu
Tang
Hui
H
Gomero
Ada
A
Vable
Anusha
A
Huang
Elbert S
ES
Drum
Melinda L
ML
Qato
Dima M
DM
Chin
Marshall H
MH
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000502:physiology*
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