SEXUAL FUNCTION OF MEN AGES 40 TO 79 YEARS - THE OLMSTED COUNTY STUDYOF URINARY SYMPTOMS AND HEALTH-STATUS AMONG MEN

OBJECTIVES: Knowledge of male sexual function is some-what limited bec ause of a lack of current population-based data. This study provides i nformation on sexual function and satisfaction in a population-based s ample of men. METHODS: Men aged 40 to 79 years (n = 2115) were selecte d randomly from the Olmsted County population for the baseline compone nt of a prospective cohort study (the Olmsted County Study of Urinary Symptoms and Health Status Among Men) during 1989-1990. The men comple ted a self-administered questionnaire that included questions about se xual concerns, performance, satisfaction, drive, and erectile dysfunct ion. RESULTS: For all five sexual parameters queried, the prevalence o f problems and dysfunction increased with age. A comparison of men age d 70 to 79 years with men aged 40 to 49 years suggested that older men were more worried about sexual function (46.6% vs 24.9%), had worsene d performance compared with a year ago (30.1% vs 10.4%), expressed ext reme dissatisfaction with sexual performance (10.7% vs 1.7%), had abse nt sexual drive (25.9% vs 0.6%), and reported complete erectile dysfun ction when sexually stimulated (27.4% vs 0.3%). Logistic regression an alyses suggested that sexual dissatisfaction was significantly associa ted with erectile dysfunction, decreased libido, and the interaction b etween erectile dysfunction and libido, but not age. CONCLUSIONS: Thes e population-based cross-sectional data corroborate the previously rep orted age-related decrease in sexual function. The age-related increas e in dissatisfaction could, however, be accounted for primarily by the age-related increase in erectile dysfunction, decreased libido, and t he interaction between erectile dysfunction and decreased libido.