The socio-cultural aspects of sexual medicine: recommendations from the Fifth International Consultation on Sexual Medicine (ICSM 2024).

Introduction: The intersection of culture, history, religion, traditions, laws, political trends, and evolving attitudes affects sexual expression and acceptance or rejection of sexual practices. Clinicians and clinical care are affected by these factors as well, although clinicians are not always aware of the way in which their training, their own experiences and attitudes influence the way in which they approach patients. In this paper, we contextualize and then describe 2 areas of sexual practices and 1 area of sexual difficulty that sexual medicine clinicians encounter in their practice, namely, the practice of female genital mutilation/cutting, penile circumcision, and the experience of unconsummated marriages.

How has the biopsychosocial model fared in sexual medicine and sex therapy?

Introduction: The purported predominance of the biopsychosocial model is reviewed, including its underlying factors that determine the etiology and treatment of sexual disorders. We recommend that sexual health professionals embrace a broader recognition of all facets of the model. Periodic re-examination is necessary to optimize its strengths and minimize misapplication.

Providing culturally sensitive sexual medicine for persons with disabilities: a scoping review.

Introduction: Persons with physical disabilities (PWD) are a health care disparity group who face both difficulties accessing and inequalities in care. Although their sexual health is impacted by their disability and important to them, they often receive no or inadequate sexual health care. To address this gap, we sought to summarize evidence-based recommendations for culturally sensitive sexual health care for PWD.

Social development of girls with a physical disability during adolescence: Parent perspectives.

Purpose/objective: This study aims to investigate the parents' perspectives of the social experiences of their daughters with a physical disability during adolescence.

Research Method/design: Parents of girls with a physical disability aged 7-26 were recruited through a combination of convenience, purposive, and snowball sampling. Semistructured interviews were conducted with respect to the experience of adolescence for their daughters.

Top Ten Tips Palliative Care Clinicians Should Know About Addressing Patient Sexuality and Intimacy in Serious Illness.

Patient sexuality and intimacy comprise important dimensions of quality of life (QOL), making them essential topics for palliative care (PC) clinicians to address. Created with interprofessional input from PC, urology, gynecology, sexual health, oncology, psychiatry, psychology, nursing, and social work, this article offers 10 high-yield, evidence-based tips to better equip PC clinicians to address sexuality and intimacy for patients with serious illness. These tips highlight skills such as opening discussions, assessing concerns through a biopsychosocial model, and thinking through appropriate interventions to improve QOL.

"There is a lot of shame that comes with this": A qualitative study of patient experiences of isolation, embarrassment, and stigma associated with overactive bladder.

Aims: Beyond causing physical discomfort, overactive bladder (OAB) is distressing to patients across a variety of psychosocial domains. In this qualitative component of a larger mixed methods study, we explore patients' lived experience with OAB to understand how this condition impacts individuals on a personal and social level, as well as their experiences interacting with the health care system.

Methods: A total of 20 patients and 12 physicians completed a questionnaire and semi-structured interview.

Development and Validation of a Survey to Assess Sexual Health in Female Partners of Patients with Prostate Cancer.

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) diagnosis and treatment can have a significant negative impact on sexual health, affecting patients and their partners; however, the impact on partners is insufficiently addressed in current practice.

Objective: We describe the development and validation of an instrument to measure sexual health in female partners of patients with PCa.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Questions assessing sexual health were developed through a literature review, two qualitative studies, and an expert consensus process.

Patient and physician decision-making dynamics in overactive bladder care: A mixed methods study.

Aims: Overactive bladder management includes multiple therapeutic options with comparable efficacy but a range of administration modalities and side effects, creating an ideal setting for shared decision-making. This study investigates patient and physician health beliefs surrounding decision-making and expectations for overactive bladder with the aim of better understanding and ultimately improving decision-making in overactive bladder care.

Methods: Patient and physician participants completed a questionnaire followed by a semi-structured interview to assess health beliefs surrounding decision making and expectations for overactive bladder treatment.

Primary Care Physician and Urologist Perspectives on Optimizing Active Surveillance for Low-Risk Prostate Cancer.

Purpose: We conducted a study to understand primary care physician (PCP) and urologist perspectives on determinants of active surveillance care delivery for men with low-risk prostate cancer.

Methods: We conducted in-depth, semistructured, virtual interviews with a purposive sample of 19 PCPs and 15 urologists between June 2020 and March 2021. We used the behavioral theory-informed Theoretical Domains Framework to understand barriers to and facilitators of active surveillance care delivery.

Unmet Sexual Health Resource Needs and Preferences for Interventions to Address These Needs Among Female Partners of Patients With Prostate Cancer.

Objective: To characterize unmet sexual health resource needs and preferences for interventions to address unmet needs among female partners of patients with prostate cancer (PCa), given the significant negative impact of PCa on the sexual health of partners.

Methods: We conducted an exploratory sequential mixed methods study of female partners recruited from multiple U.S.

Comparing Patient-reported Functional Outcomes After Radical Prostatectomy in Historical and Contemporary Practice.

Purpose: Modifications to surgical technique, particularly the widespread adoption of robotic surgery, have been proposed to improve functional recovery after prostate cancer surgery. However, rigorous comparison of men in historical vs contemporary practice to evaluate the cumulative effect of these changes on urinary and sexual function after radical prostatectomy is lacking.

Materials And Methods: We compared prospectively collected patient-reported urinary and sexual function from historical (PROSTQA [Prostate Cancer Outcomes and Satisfaction With Treatment Quality Assessment study], n=235) and contemporary (MUSIC-PRO [Michigan Urological Surgery Improvement Collaborative Patient Reported Outcome] registry, n=1,215) cohorts at the University of Michigan to understand whether modern techniques have resulted in functional improvements for men undergoing prostate cancer surgery.

"They had the lunch lady coming up to assist": The experiences of menarche and menstrual management for adolescents with physical disabilities.

Background: Menarche is a pivotal time in an adolescent's life but can be experienced differently by those with physical disabilities. Parents typically serve as the primary educators and support for their daughters during this time. Little is known about the parent's perspective of their daughter's experience preparing for menarche and learning to manage menses.

Pelvic Recovery After Endometrial Cancer Treatment: Patient-Reported Outcomes and MRI Findings.

Rationale And Objectives: Most women with endometrial cancer (EC) have an excellent prognosis and may be cured. However, treatment-related pelvic functional impacts may affect long-term quality of life. To better understand these concerns, we explored correlations between patient-reported outcomes and pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features in women treated for EC.

Sexual Health Outcomes of Adolescent and Young Adult Colorectal Cancer Survivors and Their Partners: Protocol of a Dyadic Mixed Methods Study.

Background: Sexual dysfunction represents a critical aspect of quality of life for adolescent and young adult cancer survivors. Studies have consistently documented that adolescents and young adults report greater psychological and physical morbidity than older survivors and healthy peers, including elevated rates of sexual dysfunction, often accompanied by lower satisfaction with sex life and delays in meeting sexual milestones. Moreover, sexual dysfunction, body image concerns, and fertility status affect their confidence in being both physically and emotionally intimate.

Understanding the sexual health perceptions, concerns, and needs of female partners of prostate cancer survivors.

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) and its treatments can have a significant negative impact on the sexual health of survivors and couples, but few studies have specifically examined the impact of PCa-related sexual dysfunction on female partners of survivors.

Aim: Our objective was to perform a qualitative study to comprehensively characterize female partners' perceptions of the implications of PCa on their sex lives, as well as partners' sexual health concerns and unmet needs.

Methods: We conducted semi-structured telephone interviews about sexual health and unmet needs with female partners of PCa survivors recruited from multiple clinical locations and support groups for PCa caregivers from September 2021 to March 2022.

Sexual Function, Anxiety, Depression and Coping After Myocardial Infarction: An Exploratory Study.

Background: Myocardial infarction (MI) may decrease sexual function and satisfaction in men and can be influenced by anxiety, depression, and sexual fear. However, few studies have examined short-term changes in sexual function over time in a post-MI population. This study aimed to longitudinally describe changes in sexual function and satisfaction in a sample of men post-MI.

Unmet Sexual Health Needs of Patients and Female Partners Following Diagnosis and Treatment for Prostate Cancer.

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) and its treatment can have significant and pervasive sexual side effects for patients and their partners; however, partner needs are not well understood, and most resources do not incorporate partner priorities.

Aim: Our objective was to perform a qualitative study to identify unmet sexual needs of patients and female partners after PCa diagnosis.

Methods: We conducted a qualitative study of posts to the Inspire Us TOO Prostate Cancer Online Support and Discussion Community.

Predictors of sexual function among men after myocardial infarction: a pilot study.

Background: Sexual dysfunction often persists among men post-myocardial infarction (MI). While some cross-sectional and longitudinal research has been conducted, there are still no known modifiable targets for intervention. This pilot study aimed to model hypothesized predictive factors of higher sexual function in a cohort of men post-MI.