title: Effect of menses on standardized assessment of sexual dysfunction among women with uterine fibroids: a cohort study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine if assessment of sexual dysfunction by the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) is related to whether the FSFI is administered during or between menses, in women with symptomatic uterine fibroids.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective cohort.
  
  
  METHODS
  Academic medical centers.
  
  
  METHODS
  Premenopausal women who had symptomatic uterine fibroids and were enrolled in fibroid treatment trials.
  
  
  METHODS
  Administration of FSFI during and between menses.
  
  
  METHODS
  Mean FSFI scores in each of 6 domains, and a discordance score to report individual differences in assessment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-three women completed the FSFI, during menstruation, and at a time in their cycle when they were not menstruating. The mean FSFI scores for each domain did not differ based on when in the menstrual cycle the instrument was administered. However, on an individual level, nearly half of the women reported sexual dysfunction differently during menses than between menses. Of those that reported differences, the pain and desire domains improved; the lubrication and satisfaction domains worsened during menses.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the mean values of the domain scores were not different, women did report differences in sexual functioning during vs. between menses. Timing of the questionnaire in relation to menses should be considered in sexual-dysfunction assessment for women with uterine fibroids.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  NCT00995878.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gynecology, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota; Department of Surgery, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota. Electronic address: laughlintommaso.shannon@mayo.edu.
authors.forename: Shannon K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Laughlin-Tommaso
authors.affiliation: Division of Health Care Policy & Research, Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Bijan J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Borah
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota; Department of Surgery, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota; Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Stewart
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D007889:Leiomyoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D008598:Menstruation / Q000502:physiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012735:Sexual Dysfunction, Physiological / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D014594:Uterine Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D064887:Observational Studies as Topic
keywords: Female Sexual Function Index; Leiomyoma; fibroid; sexual function