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Increased research attention to interpersonal factors in genitopelvic pain conditions, such as vulvodynia, have led to more comprehensive understanding of couple dynamics in pain, sexual, and relationship outcomes. There has been very little examination of interpersonal factors in Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder/Genitopelvic Dysesthesia (PGAD/GPD), a distressing condition involving persistent sensations of arousal and often pain. The aims of the present study were to examine whether individuals disclose their symptoms to intimate partners and whether interpersonal variables (e.g., partner responses, symptom disclosure, and catastrophizing) are related to relationship adjustment and symptom severity. Seventy-six individuals with symptoms of PGAD/GPD participated in a one-time anonymous online survey. Over three-quarters (85.5%) of the sample disclosed their symptoms to their partners in some way. Greater supportive partner responses and lower symptom catastrophizing were related to better relationship adjustment among participants with PGAD/GPD symptoms. Greater symptom catastrophizing also predicted greater PGAD/GPD symptom severity. Partner responses were not related to PGAD/GPD symptom severity. Although interpersonal factors have been linked to symptom severity in chronic pain and genitopelvic pain conditions, the results of the current study suggest that interpersonal factors may play a slightly different role in PGAD/GPD symptom experiences and in the conceptualization of PGAD/GPD more broadly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postpartum sexuality has traditionally been studied using a biomedical framework, which focuses on how the physical and biological changes that occur during pregnancy and childbirth affect the resumption of pain-free [...]

To investigate the relationship among sexual functioning, sexual script flexibility, and sexual satisfaction in individuals diagnosed with prostate cancer. Cross-sectional online survey. Sixty-one men diagnosed with localized prostate cancer. Online survey of sexual functioning, sexual script flexibility, and sexual satisfaction. Ordinal logistic regression investigated predictors of sexual satisfaction. Greater sexual script flexibility was associated with a greater likelihood of being sexually satisfied. Helping patients explore different ways of being sexual after treatment could help with sexual satisfaction maintenance. Patients' sexual satisfaction may benefit from discussions of issues related to sexuality and ways to work around treatment-related sexual dysfunction with healthcare providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laser Doppler imaging is a valid method of assessing genital response, detecting increases in genital blood flow to sexual, but not nonsexual stimuli. Although laser Doppler imaging provides a direct measure of genital blood flow, its discrete perfusion images provide a discontinuous assessment of genital response, limiting some study designs. The aims of this study were to investigate the measurement properties of laser Doppler flowmetry, a direct and continuous measure of blood flow, as well as examine the time course of genital response using flowmetry. A sample of 45 cisgender women attended two experimental sessions wherein they viewed sexual and nonsexual stimuli (e.g., neutral, anxiety, humor) while their genital responses were assessed using laser Doppler flowmetry. As expected, laser Doppler flowmetry was a valid measure of genital response—detecting increases in genital blood flow elicited by the sexual stimuli only—and was sensitive to varying degrees of genital response elicited by low, moderate, and high‐intensity sexual stimuli. The measure also exhibited convergent validity with genital response assessed via laser Doppler imaging, test–retest reliability across testing sessions, and internal consistency as well as high sexual concordance with self‐reported sexual arousal. Descriptive analyses showed that genital blood flow assessed using laser Doppler flowmetry was highly responsive, with initial, peak, and return to baseline responses occurring within timeframes appropriate for repeated measurement within a single session. Laser Doppler flowmetry is a valid, reliable, and sensitive measure of women's genital response that can be usefully applied in sexual psychophysiology research. This study is the first to demonstrate that laser Doppler flowmetry is a valid, reliable, and sensitive measure of women's genital response; this method is unique because it offers a direct and continuous measure of genital blood flow that is highly responsive to dynamic changes in genital response over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]