Evaluating the Relationship Between Structural Determinants of Health and Quality of Sexual Life in Women: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Objectives: Quality of sexual life can be influenced by cultural and social contexts. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between structural determinants of health (such as education, income level, job, culture, and ethnicity) and quality of sexual life in women. Methods: In this systematic review, we searched six databases, including Web of Science, Scopus, ProQuest, PubMed/Medline (NLM), Cochrane, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) to obtain all the related observational studies (cross-sectional, cohort, and case-control). Results: Nine studies met the inclusion criteria. Based on the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS), the risk of bias in most of the included studies was fair. According to the results, the relationship between education level and quality of sexual life among women was significant in four studies. Also, in one study, job and income level were significantly correlated with women’s quality of sexual life. Conclusions: Based on the results, structural determinants of health, including education, job, and income level were significantly related with women’s quality of sexual life.

Keywords

• quality of sexual life
• social determinants of health
• women