Introduction
Methadone has long been
regarded as an effective treatment for opioid dependence. However, many
patients discontinue maintenance therapy because of its side effects, with one
of the most common being sexual dysfunction. Buprenorphine is a proven
alternative to methadone. This study aimed to investigate sexual dysfunction in
opioid-dependent men on buprenorphine maintenance treatment (BMT) and methadone
maintenance treatment (MMT). The secondary aim was to investigate the
correlation between sexual dysfunction and the quality of life in these
patients.
Methods
Two hundred thirty-eight
men participated in this cross-sectional study. Four questionnaires were used,
the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, Opiate Treatment Index,
Malay version of the International Index of Erectile Function 15 (Mal-IIEF-15),
and World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF Scale. Multivariate analysis
of covariance was used to examine the relationship between MMT and BMT and the
Mal-IIEF 15 scores while controlling for all the possible confounders.
Results
The study population
consisted of 171 patients (71.8%) on MMT and 67 (28.2%) on BMT. Patients in the
MMT group who had a sexual partner scored significantly lower in the sexual
desire domain (p < 0.012) and overall satisfaction (p = 0.043) domain
compared with their counterparts in the BMT group. Similarly, patients in the
MMT group without a sexual partner scored significantly lower in the orgasmic
function domain (p = 0.008) compared with those in the BMT group without a
partner. Intercourse satisfaction (p = 0.026) and overall satisfaction (p =
0.039) were significantly associated with the social relationships domain after
adjusting for significantly correlated sociodemographic variables.
Conclusions
Sexual functioning is
critical for improving the quality of life in patients in an opioid
rehabilitation program. Our study showed that buprenorphine causes less sexual
dysfunction than methadone. Thus, clinicians may consider the former when
treating heroin dependents who have concerns about sexual function.
Full article at: http://goo.gl/V3IUmA
By: Anne Yee,1,* Mahmoud Danaee,1 Huai Seng Loh,2 Ahmad Hatim Sulaiman,1 and Chong Guan Ng1
Juan M Dominguez, Editor
1University Malaya Center of Addiction
Sciences, Department of Psychological Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University
of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2Clinical Academic Unit (Family Medicine),
Newcastle University Medicine Malaysia, Nusajaya, Johor, Malaysia
The University of
Texas at Austin, UNITED STATES
Competing Interests: The authors have declared
that no competing interests exist.
Conceived and designed the experiments: AY MD. Performed the
experiments: AY AHS. Analyzed the data: AY MD. Contributed
reagents/materials/analysis tools: AY CGN. Wrote the paper: HSL AY.
* E-mail: ym.ude.mu@71eeynna
More at: https://twitter.com/hiv insight
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