Though associated with decreased sex drive, menopause does not necessarily signal the end of improvements to a woman’s sex life, according to a recent study.
A group of British and Swiss researchers set out to examine the stability of women’s sexual health over time, including changes to different aspects of sexual response in pre- and post-menopausal subjects.
Menopause, which typically occurs between the ages of 45 and 55, signals the end of a woman’s reproductive life. Many women also report a drop in sexual desire. The researchers recruited 507 British women – 178 pre-menopausal and 329 post-menopausal – who provided data on their sexual functioning over four years.
The results of the study, which was published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine this week, confirm that sexual dysfunction was more common among the post-menopausal women.
However, the percentage of women who saw a decline or improvement in sexual function was nearly identical in the two groups. Twenty-two percent of pre-menopausal women developed a sexual problem over the period, compared to 23% of post-menopausal women. Similarly, 7% of pre-menopausal women saw an improvement in their sexual function over the period, compared to 8% of the post-menopausal subjects.
Overall, the researchers concluded that the sexuality of the participants remained “moderately stable” over the four years, and that improvements to sexual satisfaction are still possible after menopause, despite the potentially deleterious effects of the change of life.
