Dyspareunia Causes, Symptoms And Treatment

Dyspareunia is a term used for painful sexual intercourse. You may feel pain just before, during or after sexual intercourse. This pain is persistent or recurrent in nature. It can affect both genders but more common in females. It strongly affects your relationship by causing physical and psychological discomfort or pain. The pain is more common in sexually abused people. Stress, relationship issues, contraceptive medications and certain diseases such as cancer, arthritis and diabetes also increases the incidence of painful sexual intercourse.

Causes

Dyspareunia is caused by multiple factors. It is most commonly caused by vaginal dryness. Your vagina may become dry due to menopause, breastfeeding, childbirth and certain medications. Certain medical conditions such as endometriosis, cystitis, vulvodynia, vaginitis, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), uterine fibroids, vaginismus, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can also cause pain during sexual intercourse. It can also be caused by other infections such as yeast or urinary tract infections (UTIs). People with prolonged exposure to radiation and chemotherapy are also at higher risk for developing dyspareunia. Skin disorders such as eczema, lichen planus, lichen sclerosus or ulcer can cause painful sexual intercourse. Different surgical procedures such as C-section, episiotomy, hysterectomy, female genital mutilation (FGM) or pelvic surgery can also make your sexual intercourse painful.

Symptoms

The clinical presentation of dyspareunia varies from person to person. However, the most common symptoms are listed below,

• Pain before, during or after sexual intercourse
• Pain during penetration (It may be during first entry or with each penetration)
• Pain in the vagina, urethra or bladder
• Burning pain
• Aching pain
• Deep pain
• Throbbing pain or stabbing pain similar to severe menstrual cramps which lasts for about hours after intercourse
• Pain with the use of tampon

Treatment

Counseling is proved to be very effective for the treatment of dyspareunia. A person with sexual abuse, trauma or other emotional issues needs proper counseling sessions. Cognitive behavioral therapy is very helpful in changing your perception or negative thoughts. In case of vaginal dryness, your doctor will prescribe topical estrogen. Sometimes, vaginal dryness is caused by certain medicine. In this case, your doctor will prescribe you alternative medicines with low risk of vaginal dryness.

Another effective medicine for the treatment of mild to severe dyspareunia is ospemifene. It behaves like estrogen on your vaginal lining. Exercise is also very effective for reducing the severity of pain in dyspareunia.