Chronic kidney disease report differently on change in sexual function dependent on treatment: a cohort study

Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) report sexual dysfunction to a large extent. The objective of this study was to investigate if CKD-stage and mode of treatment correlate to self-reported experience in sexual function before and after onset of symptomatic CKD in patients without active treatment, after transplantation or on dialysis. Participants (N = 234) answered a questionnaire on frequency of sexual desire, initiative, intercourse, erection (men) /vaginal lubrication (women), and orgasm, currently and compared with before onset of symptomatic CKD. Clinical data were taken from medical charts. Within-group differences in sexual function were compared for patients without active treatment (PreT), patients with a renal transplant (Tx) and patients on dialysis treatment (D). In a subgroup analysis, five patient groups were created based on mode of treatment and CKD stage. Between-group differences in sexual function were analyzed as differences in mean composite scores and 95% CI and were estimated using ordinary least square regression with robust standard errors. In the first analysis of the study, all CKD patients reported a decrease in the frequency of sexual desire, initiative, intercourse, erection (men)/vaginal lubrication (women), and orgasm (Bonferroni p < 0.001) compared to before disease onset, irrespective of treatment mode. In the subgroup analysis, when adjusting for sex and age, dialysis patients reported a statistically significant decrease in their average score of sexual function (−2.65; 95% CI: −4.19 to −1.11; p = 0.001) compared to patients without active treatment CKD 2–3 (the reference group). The self-reported experience of CKD-patients of a deteriorating sexual function over time correlates to treatment modality and CKD stage. It is important for health-care personnel to be aware of the patients' experience of a deterioration in sexual function over time regardless of treatment modalities.