title: [Sexual function and quality of life of low-risk pregnant women].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate, in healthy women in the second trimester of pregnancy, a possible association between sexual function and quality of life, and between sexual function and sexual satisfaction.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional study involved 51 pregnant women managed at a low-risk antenatal care clinic. Sexual function was evaluated through the Sexual Quotient - Female Version (QS-F) questionnaire. Quality of life and sexual satisfaction were evaluated though the brief version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire (WHOQOL-bref). Inclusion criteria were pregnancy between 15-26 weeks, maternal age 20 or more years, at least five years of schooling, in a relationship with a single partner for the last 6 months, having sexual intercourse with vaginal penetration in the last 15 days. We excluded women with a history of sexual violence, previous or current depression, habitual abortion or obstetric complications in the index pregnancy (premature rupture of membranes, preterm labor or hemorrhage). The χ² and Fisher exact tests were used for statistical analyses and p<0.05 was considered significant.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most of the participants (64.8%) obtained "regular to excellent" grades on the QS-F and 58.8% classified their quality of life as "good". As to sexual satisfaction, 35.3 and 15.7% declared that they were "satisfied" and "very satisfied" with their sexual life, respectively. The study detected significant associations between "bad to poor" QS-F grades with a "poor" quality of life (p=0.002), and with "regular to good" and "good to excellent" QS-F grades with "satisfaction" or "high" sexual satisfaction" (p<0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Sexual function is associated with quality of life and with sexual satisfaction in healthy women in the second trimester of pregnancy.
authors.affiliation: Hospital Maternidade Leonor Mendes de Barros, Programa de Pós-graduação em Obstetrícia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua Napoleão de Barros, 875 – Vila Clementino, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Denise Queiroz
authors.initials: DQ
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.forename: Mary Uchiyama
authors.initials: MU
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Eduardo de
authors.initials: Ed
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.forename: Corintio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mariani Neto
authors.forename: Meireluci Costa
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.forename: Tânia das Graças Mauadie
authors.initials: Td
authors.lastname: Santana
authors.forename: Carmita Helena Najjar
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Abdo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011247:Pregnancy; D011262:Pregnancy Trimester, Second; D011788:Quality of Life; D012307:Risk Factors; D019529:Sexuality; D055815:Young Adult