Sexual function before and after sacrocolpopexy for pelvic organ prolapse.

Objective: The objective of the study was to describe sexual function before and after sacrocolpopexy.

Study Design: In the Colpopexy and Urinary Reduction Efforts trial, sexual function was assessed in 224 women with sexual partners before and 1 year after surgery using validated questionnaires.

Results: After surgery, significantly fewer women reported sexual interference from "pelvic or vaginal symptoms" (32.5% 1 year after surgery vs 7.8% prior to surgery); fear of incontinence (10.7% vs 3.3%); vaginal bulging (47.3% vs 4.6%); or pain (39.9% vs 21.6%). The proportion of women with infrequent sexual desire (32%) did not change. More women were sexually active 1 year after surgery (171, 76.3%) than before surgery (148, 66.1%). The 11 women (7.4%) who became sexually inactive were more likely than sexually active women to report infrequent sexual desire (70.0% vs 22.1%, P < .001). The addition of Burch colposuspension did not have an impact on postoperative sexual function.

Conclusion: After sacrocolpopexy, most women reported improvements in pelvic floor symptoms that previously interfered with sexual function. The addition of Burch colposuspension did not adversely influence sexual function.