Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study
Abstract Introduction Systemic sclerosis (SSc) and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are very rare rheumatic diseases burdened by a high prevalence of sexual dysfunctions. However, no specific treatment has been proposed to date. To our knowledge, this is the first (pilot) study aiming to inv...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Adis, Springer Healthcare
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Rheumatology and Therapy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s40744-023-00559-9 |
| _version_ | 1797784399109947392 |
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| author | Barbora Heřmánková Maja Špiritović Sabína Oreská Hana Štorkánová Heřman Mann Karel Pavelka Ladislav Šenolt Jiří Vencovský Radim Bečvář Michal Tomčík |
| author_facet | Barbora Heřmánková Maja Špiritović Sabína Oreská Hana Štorkánová Heřman Mann Karel Pavelka Ladislav Šenolt Jiří Vencovský Radim Bečvář Michal Tomčík |
| author_sort | Barbora Heřmánková |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Introduction Systemic sclerosis (SSc) and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are very rare rheumatic diseases burdened by a high prevalence of sexual dysfunctions. However, no specific treatment has been proposed to date. To our knowledge, this is the first (pilot) study aiming to investigate the effect of an 8-week tailored physiotherapy program on the sexual health of women with SSc and IIM. Methods In total, 12 women with SSc and 4 women with IIM were enrolled in the study. Based on the patients’ capability to participate in the program, they were divided into an intervention group (IG) (mean ± SD age 46.8 ± 8.6 years) and a control group (CG) (mean ± SD age 46.3 ± 8.5 years). IG underwent the 8-week program (1 h of supervised physiotherapy twice weekly), whereas CG received no physiotherapy. At weeks 0 and 8, all patients filled in questionnaires assessing sexual function (Female Sexual Function Index [FSFI], Brief Index of Sexual Functioning for Women [BISF-W]), sexual quality of life (Sexual Quality of Life-Female [SQoL-F]), functional ability (Health Assessment Questionnaire [HAQ]), quality of life (Medical Outcomes Short Form-36 [SF-36]), and depression (Beck’s Depression Inventory-II [BDI-II]). The changes were analyzed with two-way ANOVA and Friedmann’s test. Results Compared to the statistically significant deterioration in CG over weeks 0–8, we found statistically significant improvements in the total scores of FSFI and BISF-W, and some of their domains, functional status, and the physical component of quality of life. Conclusion Our 8-week physiotherapy program not only prevented the natural course of progressive deterioration of functional ability but also led to a significant improvement in sexual function and quality of life in women with SSc and IIM. However, due to the lack of randomization and a relatively small sample size resulting from the strict inclusion criteria, further validation of our results is needed. Trial registration number: ISRCTN91200867 (prospectively registered). |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T00:39:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0af5223333ab47a99acd8396dab3c487 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2198-6576 2198-6584 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T00:39:20Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | Adis, Springer Healthcare |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Rheumatology and Therapy |
| spelling | doaj.art-0af5223333ab47a99acd8396dab3c4872023-07-09T11:24:23ZengAdis, Springer HealthcareRheumatology and Therapy2198-65762198-65842023-05-011041089110510.1007/s40744-023-00559-9Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot StudyBarbora Heřmánková0Maja Špiritović1Sabína Oreská2Hana Štorkánová3Heřman Mann4Karel Pavelka5Ladislav Šenolt6Jiří Vencovský7Radim Bečvář8Michal Tomčík9Institute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyInstitute of RheumatologyAbstract Introduction Systemic sclerosis (SSc) and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are very rare rheumatic diseases burdened by a high prevalence of sexual dysfunctions. However, no specific treatment has been proposed to date. To our knowledge, this is the first (pilot) study aiming to investigate the effect of an 8-week tailored physiotherapy program on the sexual health of women with SSc and IIM. Methods In total, 12 women with SSc and 4 women with IIM were enrolled in the study. Based on the patients’ capability to participate in the program, they were divided into an intervention group (IG) (mean ± SD age 46.8 ± 8.6 years) and a control group (CG) (mean ± SD age 46.3 ± 8.5 years). IG underwent the 8-week program (1 h of supervised physiotherapy twice weekly), whereas CG received no physiotherapy. At weeks 0 and 8, all patients filled in questionnaires assessing sexual function (Female Sexual Function Index [FSFI], Brief Index of Sexual Functioning for Women [BISF-W]), sexual quality of life (Sexual Quality of Life-Female [SQoL-F]), functional ability (Health Assessment Questionnaire [HAQ]), quality of life (Medical Outcomes Short Form-36 [SF-36]), and depression (Beck’s Depression Inventory-II [BDI-II]). The changes were analyzed with two-way ANOVA and Friedmann’s test. Results Compared to the statistically significant deterioration in CG over weeks 0–8, we found statistically significant improvements in the total scores of FSFI and BISF-W, and some of their domains, functional status, and the physical component of quality of life. Conclusion Our 8-week physiotherapy program not only prevented the natural course of progressive deterioration of functional ability but also led to a significant improvement in sexual function and quality of life in women with SSc and IIM. However, due to the lack of randomization and a relatively small sample size resulting from the strict inclusion criteria, further validation of our results is needed. Trial registration number: ISRCTN91200867 (prospectively registered).https://doi.org/10.1007/s40744-023-00559-9Female sexual dysfunctionIdiopathic inflammatory myopathiesSexual dysfunction interventionPelvic floor exercisePhysiotherapySystemic sclerosis |
| spellingShingle | Barbora Heřmánková Maja Špiritović Sabína Oreská Hana Štorkánová Heřman Mann Karel Pavelka Ladislav Šenolt Jiří Vencovský Radim Bečvář Michal Tomčík Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study Rheumatology and Therapy Female sexual dysfunction Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies Sexual dysfunction intervention Pelvic floor exercise Physiotherapy Systemic sclerosis |
| title | Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study |
| title_full | Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study |
| title_fullStr | Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study |
| title_short | Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study |
| title_sort | effect of an 8 week tailored physiotherapy program on sexual health in women with scleroderma and myositis a controlled pilot study |
| topic | Female sexual dysfunction Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies Sexual dysfunction intervention Pelvic floor exercise Physiotherapy Systemic sclerosis |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/s40744-023-00559-9 |
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