Sexual dysfunctions induced by antipsychotic medications in patients with schizophrenia

Objective: Sexual dysfunctions are common among patients with schizophrenia. These disorders may also impair the compliance with antipsychotic medications and have a negative impact on quality of life. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of sexual dysfunctions and related factors in clinically stable patients who were on antipsychotic treatment. Method: The study population included 76 patients with schizophrenia. Sexual dysfunctions were investigated by UKU (UKU, Udvalg for Kliniske Undersegelser) side effect rating scale. Results: UKU showed that 36.8% of all the patients had decreased sexual desire, and among the male patients 36.2% of them had erectile dysfunction and 23.4% had problems with ejaculation. Among the female patients 20.7% had amenorrhea. The ratio of decreased sexual desire detected by UKU was higher in male patients compared to the ratio in female patients. The patients with decreased sexual desire had higher PANSS negative sub-scores than the ones without decreased sexual desire. Conclusions: These results show that sexual dysfunctions are highly common among patients with schizophrenia. Moreover, these results support the efficiency of UKU side effect rating scale in detecting sexual dysfunctions induced by antipsychotic medications in patients with schizophrenia.