ArticleSexual medicine2021
Dyspareunia in Their Own Words: A Qualitative Description of Endometriosis-Associated Sexual Pain.
Article in Sexual medicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 26 citations in OpenAlex.
- Experiences of pain communication in endometriosis: A meta-synthesis.Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2025Pooled it
- The Subjective Experience of Dyspareunia in Women with Endometriosis: A Systematic Review with Narrative Synthesis of Qualitative Research.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- Narratives on Sexuality in Vulvodynia and Endometriosis: A Qualitative Study on Italian Couples.Archives of sexual behavior · 2026Article
- Clinical Factors Affecting the Quality of Life of Women With Endometriosis.Journal of advanced nursing · 2025Article
- Can self-compassion and mindfulness predict psychological wellbeing in individuals with endometriosis? Findings from an online survey.BMC women's health · 2025Article
- Strategies for self-management of painful intercourse among female pregnancy planners.The journal of sexual medicine · 2025Article
- Ohnut vs waitlist control for the self-management of endometriosis-associated deep dyspareunia: a pilot randomized controlled trial.Sexual medicine · 2024Article
- Segmental Rectum Resection for Deep Endometriosis and Excision Similarly Improve Sexual Function and Pain.Clinics and practice · 2023Article
- A qualitative analysis of female patient perspectives on physician communication regarding sexual dysfunction associated with pelvic radiotherapy.The journal of sexual medicine · 2023Article
- The Clinical Presentation of Endometriosis and Its Association to Current Surgical Staging.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Article
- The Effect of Sexual Counseling Using BETTER Model on Sexual Function of Women with Infertility: A Randomized Controlled Trial.International journal of sexual health : official journal of the World Association for Sexual Health · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionDyspareunia has been called the neglected symptom of endometriosis and is underexplored in clinical and research contexts. Understanding the physical experience and patient-important aspects of endometriosis-associated sexual pain can help advance valid measurement of this symptom.
aimsThe goal of this research was to characterize the physical experience of endometriosis-associated dyspareunia in the words of people affected by this condition.
methodsThis was a qualitative descriptive study that included participants with current or previous endometriosis-associated dyspareunia recruited from a data registry. Data collection involved semistructured interviews that began with an open-ended question about dyspareunia followed by prompts related to the nature of sexual pain.
main outcome measuresInterviews transcripts were subjected to qualitative content analysis using a priori (pain site, onset, character, radiation, associations, time course, and exacerbating/relieving factors) and emergent themes.
resultsA total of 17 participants completed interviews. Mean participant age was 33.3 years and most were identified as white, college-educated, heterosexual, and partnered. Location, onset, and character were important; interrelated features of endometriosis-associated dyspareunia were: (i) introital pain began with initial penetration and had pulling, burning, and stinging qualities and (ii) pelvic pain was experienced with deep penetration or in certain positions and was described as sharp, stabbing, and cramping. Dyspareunia ranged from mild to severe, had a marked psychosocial impact for some participants, and was managed using a variety of treatments and strategies.
conclusionThe endometriosis-associated dyspareunia experienced by participants was heterogenous in presentation, severity, and impact. Our findings have implications for the development of valid patient-reported outcome measures of this symptom. Wahl KJ, Imtiaz S, Lisonek M, et al. Dyspareunia in Their Own Words: A Qualitative Description of Endometriosis-Associated Sexual Pain. Sex Med 2021;9:100274.
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