Marital Adjustment, Sexual Function, and Body Image After Hysterectomy

Hysterectomy is a common surgery among women in which the uterus, cervix, and sometimes ovaries and fallopian tubes are removed. As women’s reproductive organs are important to their sexual image, hysterectomy can affect their psychological status, personal interactions, and especially marital adjustment and sexual function. Moreover, sexual function and marital adjustment can be affected by women’s thoughts about their body image.

The current study aimed at comparing marital adjustment and sexual function in women’s job, focusing on the moderating role of body image.

This causal-comparative study was conducted among 200 women (100 with hysterectomy and 100 without hysterectomy) recruited via the purposive sampling method. The cases were assigned into two groups of control and study based on their age range, level of education, marital status, and lack of chronic mental and physical disorders. Data collection instruments were the female sexual function index (FSFI), dyadic adjustment scales (DAS), the body image concern inventory (BICI), and a demographic checklist.

Independent t-test showed that the total score of marital adjustment (t = -6.108, P = 0.001) and each of its subscales, dyadic agreement (t = -4.44, P = 0.001), marital satisfaction (t = -5.98; P = 0.001), dyadic cohesion (t = -4.38, P = 0.001), expressing affection (t = -5.91; P = 0.001), and sexual function (t = -6.55, P = 0.001) were significantly lower in women undergoing hysterectomy than in those not undergoing hysterectomy. However, according to regression analysis and results of bootstrapping, the upper and lower bounds of the effect of body image on marital adjustment and sexual function were within the overlapping section. Hence, these effects were similar in both groups of the study [95% confidence interval (CI)], and the differences were insignificant.

According to the study, marital adjustment and sexual function decrease after hysterectomy. Therefore, specialist treatment and family counseling interventions seem to be essential in order to improve sexual performance andmarital adjustment in women who underwent hysterectomy.