Evaluation of sexual problems in hepatitis B and C patients

Aim: Although the transmission route in patients with viral hepatitis is a frequently studied area, the sexual problems of patients are one of the unexplored and unanswered issues. Hepatitis B and C are diseases that are frequently followed in family medicine practice. Sexual problems are a condition that most individuals only talk about to their family doctor. In this study, it was aimed to detect sexual dysfunctions in hepatitis B and C patients and to examine them sociodemographically. Materials And Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study included 132 patients who applied to Samsun Training and Research Hospital Infectious Diseases Polyclinics between April 2022 and May 2022 and were followed up with the diagnosis of hepatitis B and C infection. A total of 38 questions, including 10 questions evaluating the sociodemographic characteristics and sexual repertoire of the patients, and 28 questions in the Golombok-Rust Sexual Satisfaction Scale-Female and Male Forms, which were prepared by using the literature, were applied to the patients using the closed envelope method. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 25.0 was used for data analysis in the study. Results: Majority of the participants (59.8%) are male patients. The minimum age of the participants is 20, the maximum age is 64, and the average age is 42.34. It was determined that 80.3% of the participants were married, 43.9% were high school graduates and 27.3% were civil servants. It was determined that 82.6% of the participants were diagnosed with Hepatitis B and 17.4% were diagnosed with Hepatitis C. It was determined that 90.2% of the participants had anxiety about transmitting Hepatitis B / Hepatitis C disease to each other with their partners. A statistically significant difference was found between those who were worried about transmitting the hepatitis B / Hepatitis C disease to their partner and their marital status (p=0.021). It has been observed that the rate of those who have not experienced hepatitis with their partner before or have sexual problems that occur more frequently than before is 69.7%. A statistically significant positive correlation was found between age and the total score of the Golombok Rust Sexual Satisfaction Scale (rho=0.456 p<0.001) and the scores of some of its sub-dimensions. A statistically significant difference was found between the total score of the women's Golombok Rust Sexual Satisfaction Scale and their educational status (KV=18.417 p<0.001). Golombok Rust Sexual Satisfaction Scale medians were found to be higher for women with primary school education and below compared to other groups. As a result of the Games-Howell post hoc analysis, a statistically significant difference was found between primary school and between lower and high school (p=0.010), between primary school and lower and undergraduate and higher (p<0.001). A statistically significant difference was found between men's "Communication" score, one of the sub-dimensions of the Glombok Rust Sexual Satisfaction Scale, and marital status (Z=-3.357 p=0.001). The median "Communication" was found to be higher for the married compared to the single/widow/divorced. Conclusion: With the diagnosis of hepatitis B and C patients, it was observed that the patients had problems affecting any or all aspects of sexuality. We think that by shedding light on the sexual problems of hepatitis patients, who are frequently followed by family physicians, with the increase of such studies especially in primary care, awareness of family physicians on these issues will be increased, and patients will find solutions to their problems by removing their reservations about sexuality. Due to the insufficient number of comprehensive studies on this subject, we hope that our study and our findings will contribute to the literature. Keywords: Family Medicine, Viral Hepatitis, Sexual Problems