ARTICLE INFO

Article Type

Qualitative Study

Authors

Melkari   B. (1)
Farahbakhsh   K. (*1)
Farrokhi   N. (2)
Motamedi   A. (3)






(1) Counseling Department, Psychology & Educational Sciences Faculty, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran
(2) Measurement & Measurement Department, Psychology & Educational Sciences Faculty, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran
(3) Clinical Psychology Department, Psychology & Educational Sciences Faculty, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

Correspondence

Address: Counseling Department, Psychology & Educational Sciences Faculty, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Dehkadeh Olampik, Tehran, Iran. Postal Code: 1489684511
Phone: +98 (21) 48390000
Fax: +98 (21) 48390000
kiiumars@yahoo.com

Article History

Received:  August  18, 2018
Accepted:  December 15, 2018
ePublished:  March 17, 2020

BRIEF TEXT


Sexual dysfunction is one of the most important factors that can play a fundamental role in the individual and social health and adjustment of people.

… [1-8]. Chemical injury can be considered as a serious factor in the emergence or exacerbation of sexual dysfunction by causing organic and psychological changes in male and female casualties [9]. Chemical injury can also affect the sexual responses of the affected cases and exacerbate and cause sexual dysfunction. It has shown that in chemical injuries and chronic physical illnesses, including skin, lung and respiratory disorders, the tendency to have sex decreases, and the rate of sexual dysfunction increases [10], which can lead to significant disruptions in individual and social relationships [11]. … [12-26].

The purpose of this study was to identify sexual dysfunctions in chemical warfare victims in Sardasht city.

This study was qualitative research with a phenomenological approach.

This research was carried out in 2018 using the grounded theory method among all chemical warfare victims in Sardasht city.

At first, Hurlbert Index of Sexual Desire (HISD) was distributed among the identified individuals and 60 chemical victims (30 females and 30 males) with low score were selected by purposive sampling method for participation in the study.

Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. All interviews were recorded and then transcribed, and finally, the data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step process and grounded theory method.

Most of the participants were in the age group of 50-41 years, had below diploma education, were housewives, with a percentage of injury of 25-25%, and had children (Table 1).The axial code of "multiple sexual dysfunctions" included 9 selected codes. 1) Failure to initiate sex: The first code was a failure to initiate a sexual relationship, which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with two secondary concepts "no internal passion for sexual intercourse" and "mental escape and practical avoidance of sexual relationship". 2) No sexual arousal: The second code was no sexual arousal ", which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with two secondary concepts "lack of dynamism of sexual interaction" and "lack of joy and sexual attraction". 3) Lack of orgasm or orgasm disorder: The third code was lack of orgasm or orgasm disorder", which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with two secondary concepts included "inability to perceive orgasm" and "mental escape and inability to prolong sexual intercourse." 4) Genital dysfunction or genital pain disorder: The fourth code was Genital dysfunction or genital pain disorder, which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with two secondary concepts "perception of genital pain without sexual intercourse" and "perception of genital pain during sexual intercourse." 5) Sexual boredom: The fifth code was sexual boredom, which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with two secondary concepts "lack of perception of pleasure during sexual intercourse" and a "severe perception of tension during sexual intercourse." 6) Disruption of sexual ability or lack of essentials of the sexual process: The sixth code was Disruption of sexual ability or lack of essentials of the sexual process, which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with three secondary concepts "disruption of sexual skills and needs to start sexual intercourse", "disruption of sexual skills and needs to continue sexual intercourse " and "disruption of sexual skills and needs to manage sexual intercourse". 7) Erectile dysfunction: The seventh code was erectile dysfunction, which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with three secondary concepts "disruption at the beginning of an erection", "disruption to continue an erection" and "disruption to manage an erection" 8) Multi-faceted disorder in ejaculation: The eighth code was multi-faceted disorder in ejaculation (in men), which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with three secondary concepts "premature ejaculation disorder", "late ejaculation disorder" and "inability to keep ejaculation with the spouse" 9) Masturbation: The ninth code was masturbation, which during the analysis of the collected data was associated with two secondary concepts "preference for masturbation to sex" and "dependence on masturbation".

… [27-30]. The results of a study aimed at investigating the effect of respiratory diseases on sexual function showed that there is a relationship between the amount of oxygen absorbed in the body and erectile dysfunction. It was found that three of the four patients who received oxygen for a month gained their sexual ability. As a result, both the oxygen pressure (PO2) of the arteries and their testosterone were increased. However, this study showed that the duration of oxygen uptake to improve sexual function should be long [31]. In this regard, a study on non-military injured cases affected by chemical weapons showed several problems with sexual health in these cases [32]. … [33-42].

In addition to examining the prevalence of sexual problems in these veterans, it is recommended to assess the prevalence of these problems in the general population and compare the results with our results.

This research was conducted in Sardasht city and the results cannot be generalized to all chemical veterans.

Identified sexual dysfunctions included disorder in initiating sexual relations, lack of sexual arousal, lack of perception of sexual pleasure, sexual organ dysfunction, lack of sexual desire, impotency, erectile dysfunction, the multi-faceted disorder in ejaculation and masturbation.

This study was extracted from a Ph.D. dissertation of Allameh Tabatabai University and approved by the Janbazan Medical and Engineering Research Center.

None declared.

In order to observe ethical considerations, first, all participants were informed about voluntary participation in the research.

This study was supported by the authors.

TABLES and CHARTS

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