Trial reportThe journal of sexual medicine2023
A virtual, group-based mindfulness intervention for midlife and older women with low libido lowers sexual distress in a randomized controlled pilot study.
Trial report in The journal of sexual medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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.
The trial behind it
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 20 citations in OpenAlex.
- The barriers and enablers to accessing sexual health and sexual well-being services for midlife women (aged 40-65 years) in high-income countries: A mixed-methods systematic review.Women's health (London, England)Pooled it
- Qualitative Findings from a Pilot Trial of Mindfulness for Low Sexual Desire in Midlife and Older Women.Archives of sexual behavior · 2025Trial
- Article
- Telehealth for Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare: Evidence Map of Effectiveness, Patient and Provider Experiences and Preferences, and Patient Engagement Strategies.Clinics and practice · 2026Review
- Different faces of anxiety in sexual dysfunction: key features, effective interventions, and critical implications for health care professionals-ESSM position statements.Sexual medicine · 2025Review
- The Mediating Role of Sexual Mindfulness on the Relationship Between Black Women's Psychological and Sexual Functioning.Mindfulness · 2025Article
- Effects of Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Sexual Health in Menopause: A Systematic Review.International journal of sexual health : official journal of the World Association for Sexual Health · 2025Article
- Supporting the sexual healthcare needs of aging women.Nature aging · 2024Article
- Homework adherence in mindfulness-based cognitive interventions for female sexual dysfunction: a scoping review.The journal of sexual medicine · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundDistressing low libido is common among women and has significant negative impacts; mindfulness has shown promise to increase sexual desire in women with low libido, but existing interventions are not tailored to midlife and older women.
aimWe adapted a mindfulness intervention to meet the needs of this population and conducted a pilot randomized controlled trial to assess feasibility and acceptability.
methodsWomen aged ≥45 years with low libido were randomized to the mindfulness intervention or an education group that met over videoconferencing. The intervention included mindfulness instruction and practice, group discussion, and education on sexuality and aging. The education group included general information on menopause and health. OUTCOMES: We defined feasibility by the number of screened women who enrolled and completed their group. We defined acceptability as satisfaction with the group and likelihood of recommending it to another woman with low libido. We assessed sexual function (Female Sexual Function Index) and sexual distress (Female Sexual Distress Scale-Revised) at 6 weeks postconclusion.
resultsOf 81 women screened, 31 were randomized to mindfulness and 30 to education. Eighteen women in the intervention group and 23 in the control group attended at least 1 session. Time conflict was the main reason for nonattendance. Of the 41 women who started attending groups, 37 (90%) attended at least 5 sessions. In the mindfulness group, 73% of women were very or extremely satisfied. Women in the mindfulness group were more likely to recommend it to another person with low libido as compared with those in the education group (P = .031); 67% said that they would probably or definitely recommend it. There were no significant changes in sexual function in either group (mean Female Sexual Function Index score, 22.6 to 18.6 [P = .101] with mindfulness and 21.2 to 19.7 [P = .537] with education). Women in the mindfulness group had significant improvements in sexual distress (mean Female Sexual Distress Scale-Revised score, 27.1 to 19.7; P = .021) while women in the education group did not (19.0 to 15.8; P = .062). CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Mindfulness may reduce sexual distress in older women with low libido. STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS: This is the first trial testing mindfulness for midlife and older women with low libido.
conclusionA virtual mindfulness intervention for midlife and older women with low libido is feasible and acceptable and appears to improve sexual distress as compared with an education control; these findings provide data that can be used to design a larger clinical trial.
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What OpenQuestion holds
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.