Just How Common Is Sexual Distress Among U.S. Women?

According to surveys, about 40% of American and British women suffer from female sexual dysfunction. To find out how many women are distressed by such problems, investigators surveyed 31,000 women (age, ≥18) in a sample from a national research panel that is representative of American women.

Based on responses on a validated questionnaire about sexual function, the age-adjusted prevalence of any sexual problem was 43%. Low desire was most common, with an age-adjusted prevalence of 38%, followed by low arousal (25%) and difficulties with orgasm (21%). The age-adjusted prevalence of personal distress, based on responses to a separate validated questionnaire about sexual distress, was 22%. Any distressing sexual problem, defined as both a sexua…