Vasectomy not tied to decrease in sexual frequency

(HealthDay)—Vasectomy is not associated with decreased sexual frequency, according to a study published in the September issue of the Journal of Sexual Medicine.

David P. Guo, M.D., from the Stanford University School of Medicine in California, and colleagues analyzed data from cycles 6 (2002) to 7 (2006 to 2008) of the National Survey of Family Growth. The authors sought to compare the frequency of sexual intercourse of men who had and had not undergone vasectomy.

The researchers found that of 5,838 men, 353 had undergone vasectomy. The average frequency of sexual intercourse for vasectomized men was 5.9 times per month, compared to 4.9 times per month for non-vasectomized men. Vasectomized men had an 81 percent higher odds of having intercourse at least once a week compared with non-vasectomized men, when adjusting for age, marital status, race, education, health, body mass index, children, and income. For female respondents (5,211 women, of whom 670 reported their partners had undergone vasectomy), average frequency of intercourse was 6.3 times per month versus 6.0 for partners of non-vasectomized men.

"This finding may be helpful to couples as they consider contraceptive options," the authors write.