COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE QUALITY OF SEXUAL LIFE IN INDIVIDUALS WITH SPINAL INJURY

PARATLETS AND NON PARATLETS

Abstract

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is responsible for causing neurological damage that interferes with an individual's autonomy, it is characterized by motor, sensory and in the autonomic nervous system changes that can differ according to the injury’s location. Among the consequences of these changes in SCI, are the sexual dysfunctions. Having an active and healthy sex life contributes to a better quality of life for an individual. Sexual function is recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a sign of health, consequently, sexual dysfunctions are considered a public health problem. Sports practice is an important resource for improving functionality, self-esteem, self-acceptance, preventing the development of secondary functional limitations, in addition to improving the quality of sexual life. The aim of this study is to compare the sexual quality of life of athletes and non-athletes who are paraplegic. The type of research is descriptive, using quantitative methods, in the measurement of absolute and relative frequencies. Data were collected using a human sexuality questionnaire for individuals with spinal cord injury (modified QSH-LM). In the results, a significance level of p-value <0.05 was adopted for the test; 92.3% were very satisfied before SCI (p = 0.3352). After the injury, the sexual satisfaction, which is linked to the quality of sexual life, 43% of non-athlete paraplegics reported moderately satisfied (p = 0.041) while 50% of athletes with SCI indicated the same issue (p = 0.041). Only 7.7% reported being very satisfied after spinal cord injury (p = 0.6286).