SEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS IN MARRIED DEMENTIA SUFFERERS

Objectives. To determine the proportion of couples, one of whom suffer s from dementia, continuing with a sexual relationship, their level of satisfaction with their sexual relationship and the associations of r emaining sexually active. Design. A survey of married couples enrolled in a prospective dementia study. Setting. Psychiatric services and a memory clinic Sample. The partners of 47 married patients with mild to moderate dementia. Measures. The assessment included the GMS/HAS/SDS package, the Marital Intimacy Scale (with some additional questions re garding sexual relations), the CAMCOG, the Carers Stress Scale, the Co rnell Depression Scale and the Burns Symptom Checklist. Dementia was d iagnosed according to DSM-III-R, McKhann, McKeith, Hachinski and HAS A GECAT criteria. Results. Forty partners completed the study. Nine (22. 5%) continued to have a sexual relationship, all of whom were satisfie d with the situation. Twelve (38.7%) of the carers who were not sexual ly active were dissatisfied with the absence of a sexual relationship. There was a trend for male carers to be more likely to be involved in a continuing sexual relationship. Dissatisfaction with the absence of a sexual relationship was significantly associated with a diagnosis o f vascular dementia in the patient and showed a trend towards an assoc iation with younger patient age. Conclusions. Nearly a quarter of marr ied dementia sufferers are involved in a continuing sexual relationshi p, emphasizing the importance of further research in this area. (C) 19 97 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.