Title:The Effect of Sex Education and Counseling on the Sexual Function of Iranian Reproductive Age Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Volume: 17
Issue: 3
Author(s): Mehdi Ranjbaran*, Reza Omani-Samani, Zainab Alimoradi, Kamyar Mansori, Mina Chizari, Ali Ghandian, Nader Mahdavi and Maryam Hafezi
Affiliation:
- School of Health, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin,Iran
Keywords:
Sex counseling, sex education, women, sexual function, sexual health, pregnant women.
Abstract:
Background: The prevalence of female sexual dysfunction is high and various interventions
are used for the treatment of this disorder.
Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis study aimed to determine the effect of sex
education and counseling on the sexual function of Iranian married reproductive age women.
Methods: We searched the international databases, including ISI Web of Sciences, Pub-
Med/Medline, Scopus and local databases for published randomized clinical trials without time
limitation until March 2020. Mean Difference (MD) with 95% Confidence Interval (95% CI) was
considered as a summary effect. In order to identify factors related to heterogeneity between studies,
we conducted subgroups and Meta-regression analysis.
Results: The results showed significant differences in the pooled mean score of female sexual function
between intervention and control groups (MD=5.03, CI 95 %; 3.42 to 6.65). The education and
counseling were more effective in pregnant women (MD= 6.34, CI 95 %; 4.31 to 8.38), than other
married women (MD= 3.87, CI 95 %; 1.25 to 6.49). Counseling interventions (MD= 5.58, CI 95 %; 3.22
to 7.93) were more effective than other sexual education methods (MD= 4.31, CI 95 %; 2.06 to 6.67).
Conclusion: Educational and counseling interventions could improve the sexual performance of
women, and interventions were more effective in pregnant women. The effectiveness of counseling
interventions was better than education.
