ORIGINAL RESEARCH-EPIDEMIOLOGY: What can Prevalence Studies Tell Us about Female Sexual Difficulty and Dysfunction?

Desire difficulty is the most common sexual difficulty experienced by women. While the majority of difficulties last for less than 6 months, up to a third persist for 6 months or more. Sexual difficulties do not always cause distress. Consequently, prevalence estimates will vary depending on the time frame specified by researchers and whether distress is included in these estimates. Hayes RD, Bennett CM, Fairley CK, Dennerstein L. What can prevalence studies tell us about female sexual difficulty and dysfunction? J Sex Med 2006;3:589-595.