MONDAY, Jan. 15 (HealthDay News) -- Although the number of women with low sexual desire increases with age, the proportion of those distressed by it decreases with age, which may explain why no association between hypoactive sexual desire disorder and age is reported in peer-reviewed literature, researchers report in the January issue of Fertility and Sterility.
Richard D. Hayes, B.Sc., of the University of Melbourne, Australia, and colleagues evaluated responses from 1,998 European women and 1,591 American women, aged 20 to 70 years, who participated in the Women's International Study of Health and Sexuality to assess the association between hypoactive sexual desire disorder and aging.
The proportion of European women with low desire increased from 11 percent (20 to 29 years) to 53 percent (60 to 70 years). The proportion of American women with low desire had a trend toward an increase with age. For those 20 to 29 years, 65 percent of Europeans and 67 percent of Americans were distressed by their low sexual desire. This decreased to 22 percent for Europeans and 37 percent for Americans in those 60 to 70 years. The prevalence of low sexual desire in the population did not change significantly with age (6 percent to 13 percent in Europe, 12 percent to 19 percent in the United States).
"The proportion of women with low desire increased with age while the proportion of women distressed about their low desire decreased with age. Consequently, the prevalence of hypoactive sexual desire disorder remained essentially constant with age," the authors conclude.
Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals provided funding for the study, one author is an employee, and some authors report consulting for the company.
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