First-of-its-kind study reveals Covid wreaks havoc on women’s sex lives for months after infection

Women who have had a Covid-19 infection have lower desire, arousal, satisfaction and fewer orgasms compared to those who have never been infected, a first-of-its-kind study suggests.

Researchers in three states compared the sexual function of more than 1,300 women who had either never had Covid, had been infected with the virus, or were suffering from a long Covid-19 bout – those who had contracted the infection at least three months before the study .

They also measured the participants’ levels of depression, anxiety and stress.

The team found that women who had never had Covid had ‘significantly higher’ levels of desire, arousal, lubrication and satisfaction than the Covid and long Covid groups combined.

Additionally, “those with a long Covid-19 episode reported significantly worse arousal, lubrication, orgasm, and pain,” compared with the other groups, the team wrote.

Dr. Amelia M Stanton, author of the study and assistant professor of psychological and brain sciences at Boston University, said: ‘It It may be surprising to some people that long-term Covid symptoms can actually have a physiological and psychological impact on women’s sexual well-being.’

The researchers suggest that a long Covid-19 bout could alter blood flow to the genitals, resulting in less arousal. Previous studies have shown that the condition can damage the delicate lining of blood vessels, disrupting blood flow throughout the body.

Dr. Stanton estimates this is the first study to highlight the effect of long Covid-19 on women’s sex drive.

The team called on doctors to discuss sexual health with patients who have had Covid and offer more resources, such as medication and counseling, for sexual dysfunction.

The researchers – from Vermont, Massachusetts and California – surveyed 1,313 women divided into four age groups: 18-20, 21-30, 31-40 and over 41.

Additionally, the researchers divided the women into three groups: those who had never had Covid, those who had had Covid at least once, and those who met the criteria for long Covid, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) .

The body defines long Covid as a condition that includes symptoms such as shortness of breath, brain fog and fatigue for at least three months after the initial infection.

About half of the participants indicated that they never tested positive for Covid.

The vast majority of participants in all three groups were white, and lesbian, bisexual, asexual, and heterosexual women were all included.

The participants were given a quiz with questions such as ‘How often have you felt sexual desire in the past four weeks?’

Only women who reported having sex in the past month were included in the results.

Women infected with Covid scored 8.5 percent lower in desire, 2.5 percent less arousal and had three percent less satisfaction.

And those with a long Covid-19 spell had 12 percent less desire, five percent less arousal and five percent less lubrication.

The team is largely unsure why Covid resulted in hampered sexual desire, although they suggested it could be due to blood not flowing properly to the genitals.

“Long Covid may partly reflect underlying sensitivity to bodily sensations, discomfort or pain,” the researchers wrote.

These sensitivities, they add, could help explain why desire and satisfaction did not differ between women with Covid-19 and women with long Covid-19, while the more physiological components (i.e. lubrication, orgasm, pain) did differ between these two groups.

The research was published earlier this month in The New York Times magazine Journal of Sexual Medicine.