Paraphilic Thoughts, Behaviors and Sex Addiction in a Sample of Persons Who Use Drugs: A Cross-Sectional Study

Substance abuse and male sexual dysfunction: what lies beneath?

INTRODUCTION

Substance abuse has become a worldwide health problem, leading to numerous consequences such as social problems among family members, abnormal behavior, adverse health effects, and psychological problems as well as economic consequences.

OBJECTIVES

We sought to assess the relationship between substance abuse and male sexual health.

METHODS

A search was carried out in the following databases: PubMed, MeSH (Medical Subject Headings), Science Direct, Scopus, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, CINAHL, Academic Search Complete, and the Egyptian Knowledge Bank. The following keywords were used to assess the outcomes for relevant associations: illicit drugs, addiction, substance abuse, sexual health, erectile dysfunction, ejaculatory disorders, impotence, orgasm disorders, and sexual performance.

RESULTS

The initial literature search identified a total of 148 articles in all searched databases. After removal of duplicate studies and application of inclusion/exclusion criteria, 75 reported studies were retained for review, including 38 case-control studies and 37 cross-sectional studies. These articles were classified into the following categories according to the type of abused substance addressed: cannabis/marihuana, 16 articles; opioids, 13 articles; heroin, 11 articles; cocaine, 5 articles; tramadol, 6 articles; ketamine, 2 articles; ecstasy, 4 articles; amphetamine, 2 articles; khat, 7 articles; androgen anabolic steroids, 2 articles; and polydrugs, 7 articles. Most of these recruited articles demonstrated a negative impact of the addressed substance on male sexual health, with variable levels.

CONCLUSION

Substance abuse has negative impacts on male sexual health that should be addressed. More studies conducted with proper methodological and statistical approaches, including logistic regression analysis, are needed to predict the effects of specific substances, considering the rapidly growing effects of non-substance-use disorders on male sexual health.

Sexual Addiction, Hypersexual Behavior and Relative Psychological Dynamics during the Period of Social Distancing and Stay-at-Home Policies Due to COVID-19

During the COVID-19 pandemic, increased stress factors affected people's motivations to engage in potentially addictive behaviors. Sexuality, understood as one of the psychological aspects to be investigated to explore the level of psychological well-being of a person, has suffered considerable repercussions due to the pandemic. A growing body of evidence suggests an unprecedented increase in Internet use and online pornography consumption during the pandemic. Since March 2020, during the lockdown period, Pornhub has seen a worldwide increase in pornography use of 11.6% compared to the previous average days. This research was conducted with the aim of exploring the possible increasing use of pornographic material during the lockdown period, in order to assess whether dysfunctional behaviors, such as compulsive behaviors, and thoughts of sex-related obsessives can lead to hypersexual behavior or a more severe Sexual Addiction. The individuals who participated in our research were 18 years of age or older (mean 23.1, s.d. 5.8), and 48% male and 52% females and were recruited online to complete a self-report questionnaire in the period between April 2020 and April 2021. The questionnaires were delivered via main social networks. The tool used for our survey was the SAST (Sexual Addiction Screening Test), a questionnaire including socio-demographic data and data relating to sexual practices, such as sexual orientation and time spent on the Internet for sexual activities. The results revealed significant differences concerning the various factors investigated such as loss of control, addictive symptoms and hide score.

Review of cases, case series and prevalence studies of zoophilia in the general population

BACKGROUND

Information about the frequency of zoophilic behaviour in the general population is scarce.

OBJECTIVE

To review cases, case series and prevalence studies of zoophilia in adults in the general population.

METHODS

A review of publications was carried out in MEDLINE via PubMed, Scopus and the Biblioteca Virtual en Salud [Virtual Health Library] ranging from January 2000 to December 2017.

RESULTS

Thirteen papers were reviewed (ten case reports, two case series and one cross-sectional study). Twelve patients were described, the case series totalled 1,556 people and the cross-sectional study included 1,015 participants and reported a prevalence of zoophilic behaviour of 2%.

CONCLUSIONS

Information on the prevalence of zoophilic behaviour in the general population is limited. The Internet will probably be a valuable tool for further investigating these behaviours in coming years.

Portrait of an Exhibitionist

Exhibitionism has been viewed through many lenses, from the perspectives of sexual deviance, forensic psychiatry, psychopathology, psychological dynamics, feminism, behaviorism, and psychopharmacology. Starting from the description of one psychotherapy patient, the aim of this paper is to synthesize this disparate literature. The findings of the synthesis include an estimate of the lifetime male prevalence of exhibitionism, 2-4%, peaking in late adolescence. Insecure attachment, sexual abuse in childhood, substance abuse, and sexual dysfunction are acknowledged risk factors. Motives behind the act of genital exposure remain obscure, constructed of both sexual and non-sexual impulses. The usual response of women victims is alarm and disgust. Successful treatment relies on a strong therapeutic alliance with specific psychological and psychopharmacological interventions - comparative effectiveness not yet determined. In conclusion, precedents for exhibitionism vary. The frequency of the behavior usually wanes with age and, while exhibitionists may pose a risk to others, they usually do not. There is, as yet, no gold standard treatment; the recommendation for therapists is to respond to individual facets of the patient's circumstances and history.