Impact of tubal sterilization and vasectomy on female marital sexuality: results of a controlled longitudinal study.

To determine if female or male sterilization affects long-term female marital sexuality, we prospectively compared baseline data and 5 consecutive years of follow-up data from 152 tubal sterilization women, 106 vasectomy wives, and 83 women not planning sterilization. By follow-up year 5, no group of women expressed any change in satisfaction with their own sexual response; however, all groups showed a significant decrease across time in satisfaction with their sexual relationship, in coital desire, and in coital frequency. There were no group differences in overall net changes or in rates of change over the 5-year period. However, two short-term group differences were noted: a decrease in coital desire among women not planning sterilization between baseline and follow-up year 4, compared with increases for both sterilization groups, and an increase in coital frequency at the first follow-up year only in the tubal sterilization group. These data indicate that there are no detrimental effects and some short-term benefits of both sterilization procedures on female marital sexuality.