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Bringing the body of the iceberg to the surface: the Female Sexual Dysfunction Index-6 (FSDI-6) in the screening of female sexual dysfunction

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Abstract

Purpose

Female Sexual Dysfunction (FSD) is a still poorly studied and underdiagnosed condition. The aim of the study was to produce an improved version of FSFI-6 (6-Item Version of the Female Sexual Function Index), entitled Female Sexual Dysfunction Index-6 (FSDI-6), and to estimate its accuracy as a screening instrument for FSD.

Methods

In the new version, an item related to the personal interest in having a satisfying sex life was added, while the item rating the entity of sexual arousal was removed. We administered FSDI-6 in a consecutive series of female adult patients not consulting for sexual problems (n = 120, Cohort 1), and in another series of patients specifically consulting for sexual problems, which were considered as the control group (n = 160, Cohort 2).

Results

FSDI-6 score was significantly higher in patients in Cohort 2 (p < 0.0001). Cronbach’s alpha for FSDI-6 was 0.784, indicating a high level of reliability. The estimated area under the ROC curve for FSDI-6 was 0.657 (p < 0.0001, 95 % CI 0.584–0.730). The proportion of subjects with a pathological FSDI-6 score (≥16.5) was 29.9 (n = 32) and 59.4 % (n = 95) in Cohort 1 and 2, respectively (p < 0.0001). Among subjects with a pathological FSDI-6 (score ≥16.5), those consulting for FSD had been postmenopausal for fewer years, had a higher level of education, a lower BMI and a lower prevalence of chronic diseases than those not consulting for FSD (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

Although a lower educational level, overweight/obesity, menopause and chronic diseases are risk factors for FSD, they are often associated with the failure in medical consultation for FSD. We propose that FSDI-6 should be performed by health care providers in non-specialist settings to detect potential FSD, which otherwise could remain under-diagnosed.

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Author notes

    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Sexual Medicine and Andrology Unit, Department of Experimental, Clinical and Biomedical Sciences “Mario Serio”, University of Florence, Viale Pieraccini 6, 50139, Florence, Italy

      E. Maseroli, E. Fanni, M. Maggi & L. Vignozzi

    2. Gynecology and Obstetrics Unit, Department of Experimental, Clinical and Biomedical Sciences “Mario Serio”, University of Florence, Florence, Italy

      M. Fambrini

    3. Diabetes Agency, Careggi Hospital, Florence, Italy

      B. Ragghianti & E. Mannucci

    4. School of Sexology, Department of Clinical, Applied and Biotechnological Sciences, University of L’Aquila, L’Aquila, Italy

      E. Limoncin

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    1. E. Maseroli
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    Correspondence to L. Vignozzi.

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    The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

    Ethical approval

    All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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    Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

    Additional information

    E. Maseroli and E. Fanni equally contributed to this article.

    Appendix

    Appendix

    See Table 4.

    Table 4 Female Sexual Dysfunction Index-6 (FSDI-6)
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    Maseroli, E., Fanni, E., Fambrini, M. et al. Bringing the body of the iceberg to the surface: the Female Sexual Dysfunction Index-6 (FSDI-6) in the screening of female sexual dysfunction. J Endocrinol Invest 39, 401–409 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40618-015-0378-4

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