Abstract
Aims: To our knowledge, this is the first study investigating
the impact of high visceral adiposity index on female sexual dysfunction
(FSD). We aimed to show the impact of increased levels of visceral
adiposity index (VAI) on FSD compared to body mass index (BMI) and waist
circumference (WC).
Methods: We included 158 participants in two groups: Group 1 (n=68 with
normal sexual function) and Group 2 (n=90 with sexual dysfunction).
Demographic, clinic data, presence of metabolic syndrome (MeTS) and
comorbidities were recorded. The BMI, WC and the visceral adiposity
index were calculated. Sexual function was assessed using the female
sexual function index (FSFI).
Results: The mean age and all the anthropometric variables were
similar between the groups (p>0.05). Metabolic syndrome was
associated with lower arousal and lubrication scores than those without
metabolic syndrome (p=0.023). The higher VAI was associated with lower
desire, lubrication and orgasm scores (p<0.05). Each integer
increase of the VAI weakly predicted decrease of desire (p=0.015),
arousal (p=0.015), lubrication (p=0.005) and satisfaction (p=0.046).
Conclusion: The VAI was linked with lower scores in some female
sexual function subdomains, but the correlation coefficient was low,
indicating a weak association. Further studies with a higher number of
participants are needed to conclude that the VAI may increase the risk
of FSD, particularly in patients with metabolic syndrome.