ArticleRMD open2021
It is not just about sex: viewpoints of men with inflammatory arthritis on the overall impact of the disease on their sexual health.
Article in RMD open, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed.
- From arthritis to erectile dysfunction: potential pathophysiological mechanisms and multidisciplinary integrated management.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2026Review
- Sexual Health, Pleasure, Justice, and Well-Being in People With Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases: A Scoping Review Protocol.Musculoskeletal care · 2025Article
- Discussing male sexual and reproductive health in the rheumatology outpatient clinic: a Q-methodology study.BMC rheumatology · 2024Article
- Holistic Care for People Living With Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: The Relevance and Importance of Sexual Function.Physical therapy · 2024Article
- 'I turned in my man card': a qualitative study of the experiences, coping styles and support needs of men with systemic sclerosis.Rheumatology (Oxford, England) · 2023Article
- Let's talk about sex, rheumatology!Nature reviews. Rheumatology · 2022Article
- Impaired fertility in men diagnosed with inflammatory arthritis: results of a large multicentre study (iFAME-Fertility).Annals of the rheumatic diseases · 2021Article
- Age, Sex, Metabolic and Pharmacologic Factors May Predict Nonresponse Status to Rheumatoid Arthritis Therapies.In vivo (Athens, Greece)Article
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesSexual health is defined as a state of physical, emotional, mental and social well-being in relation to sexuality. The impact of inflammatory arthritis (IA) on male sexual health has been mainly studied focusing on erectile function, one of the physical components of sexual health. Our objective was to describe the viewpoints among men with IA in the Netherlands on the overall impact of IA on their sexual health.
methodsQ-methodology, a mixed methods approach to systematically study subjectivity was used. Adult men diagnosed with IA ranked 34 opinion statements about potential impacts of IA on their sexual health and were interviewed. By-person factor analysis was used to identify common patterns in the rankings, which were interpreted as viewpoints. Data from the interviews were used to verify and adjust the interpretations.
results30 men (22-77 years) with IA were included. The analysis revealed three viewpoints. Men with the viewpoint 'Arthritis negatively affects my sexual health' experience a dramatic impact on all components of sexual health. In viewpoint 'I am keeping up appearances', IA negatively impacts sexual health but a distinguishing coping mechanism could mask a more serious negative impact. Men with the viewpoint 'I am satisfied with my sexual health'' experience no significant impact of IA on their sexual health.
conclusionsWe identified three viewpoints on the impact of IA on male sexual health, two revealed a negative influence that goes beyond the physical act of sex. IA can severely affect the emotional, mental and social components of sexual health.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.