ANODYSPAREUNIA, THE UNACKNOWLEDGED SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION - A VALIDATION-STUDY OF PAINFUL RECEPTIVE ANAL INTERCOURSE AND ITS PSYCHOSEXUAL CONCOMITANTS IN HOMOSEXUAL MEN

This study examines the frequency and duration of pain in same-sex ana l intercourse in a sample of 277 adult men who have engaged in, or att empted to engage in, anal intercourse during their lifetime Whereas es timates of frequency of pain appeared blocked distributed across a 7-p oint Likert scale, severity of pain appeared positively skewed, with 1 2% rating it as too painful to continue Participants rated inadequate lubrication, psychological factors such as not feeling relaxed, and la ck of digitoproctic stimulation prior to penetration as the three most important psychophysiological factors predicting pain. Factors associ ated with a greater amount of pain experienced in anal intercourse wer e depth and rate of thrusting lack of social comfort with gay men, bei ng more ''closeted,'' and less concern over becoming old or unattracti ve as a gay or bisexual man. Pain was also positively related to anxie ty. The use of condoms was not rated highly as a factor in receptive a nal pain. Based on these findings, the authors define anodyspareunia t o denote painful receptive anal intercourse, and suggest clinical crit eria similar to that used for other sexual pain disorders.