Rheumatology and Therapy (May 2023)

Effect of an 8-Week Tailored Physiotherapy Program on Sexual Health in Women with Scleroderma and Myositis: A Controlled Pilot Study

  • Barbora Heřmánková,
  • Maja Špiritović,
  • Sabína Oreská,
  • Hana Štorkánová,
  • Heřman Mann,
  • Karel Pavelka,
  • Ladislav Šenolt,
  • Jiří Vencovský,
  • Radim Bečvář,
  • Michal Tomčík

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40744-023-00559-9
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 4
pp. 1089 – 1105

Abstract

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Abstract Introduction Systemic sclerosis (SSc) and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are very rare rheumatic diseases burdened by a high prevalence of sexual dysfunctions. However, no specific treatment has been proposed to date. To our knowledge, this is the first (pilot) study aiming to investigate the effect of an 8-week tailored physiotherapy program on the sexual health of women with SSc and IIM. Methods In total, 12 women with SSc and 4 women with IIM were enrolled in the study. Based on the patients’ capability to participate in the program, they were divided into an intervention group (IG) (mean ± SD age 46.8 ± 8.6 years) and a control group (CG) (mean ± SD age 46.3 ± 8.5 years). IG underwent the 8-week program (1 h of supervised physiotherapy twice weekly), whereas CG received no physiotherapy. At weeks 0 and 8, all patients filled in questionnaires assessing sexual function (Female Sexual Function Index [FSFI], Brief Index of Sexual Functioning for Women [BISF-W]), sexual quality of life (Sexual Quality of Life-Female [SQoL-F]), functional ability (Health Assessment Questionnaire [HAQ]), quality of life (Medical Outcomes Short Form-36 [SF-36]), and depression (Beck’s Depression Inventory-II [BDI-II]). The changes were analyzed with two-way ANOVA and Friedmann’s test. Results Compared to the statistically significant deterioration in CG over weeks 0–8, we found statistically significant improvements in the total scores of FSFI and BISF-W, and some of their domains, functional status, and the physical component of quality of life. Conclusion Our 8-week physiotherapy program not only prevented the natural course of progressive deterioration of functional ability but also led to a significant improvement in sexual function and quality of life in women with SSc and IIM. However, due to the lack of randomization and a relatively small sample size resulting from the strict inclusion criteria, further validation of our results is needed. Trial registration number: ISRCTN91200867 (prospectively registered).

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