Distressing sexual problems in United States women revisited: prevalence after accounting for depression.
Since about 40% of women with a low-desire problem also have depression at the same time, can we check my mood properly before deciding this is purely a sexual problem?
Suggestive but preliminary. Not settled. how we score evidence
Caveat on this rating: The authors say plainly that because the study is cross-sectional, "causality versus comorbidity cannot be determined" — this is overlap, not a demonstration that depression causes low desire. Depression was defined partly by antidepressant use, which itself lowers desire, so the two exposures are entangled. The MEDLINE record lists the publication type "Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't", indicating unnamed external non-government support.
Re-analysing the same 31,581 US women after accounting for concurrent depression, the population prevalence of a distressing desire disorder fell from 10.0% to 6.3% once women with current depression were excluded — meaning roughly 40% of women with a desire, arousal, or orgasm disorder also had depression at the same time. The same pattern held for arousal and orgasm. Low desire and depression overlap so heavily that treating one without assessing the other misses close to half the cases.
Worth asking
Since about 40% of women with a low-desire problem also have depression at the same time, can we check my mood properly before deciding this is purely a sexual problem?
What to watch for
Evidence quality tells you whether to trust the finding — not whether the treatment is safe. These are the risks this research reports.
- Sexual side effects
Source
Distressing sexual problems in United States women revisited: prevalence after accounting for depression. — Johannes CB, Clayton AH, Odom DM, Rosen RC, Russo PA, Shifren JL, Monz BU. (2009)
Reputable peer-reviewed journal
Read the source: https://doi.org/10.4088/JCP.09m05390gry
DOI: 10.4088/JCP.09m05390gry
How this was scored
- Study design
- Cross-sectional study / survey
- Funding
- Funding not disclosed
- Published in
- Reputable peer-reviewed journal
- Sample size
- 31,581
- Preregistered
- No
- Conflicts disclosed
- No
- Independent of proponent
- not recorded
- Retracted
- No
Read the full scoring rubric, including what it can't tell you.
Published August 19, 2026.
Where we put this study in context
Questions
How strong is the evidence behind this?
Resolv rates this source "early signal". Suggestive but preliminary. Not settled. It scores 47 out of 100 on our published rubric. One caveat travels with that badge: The authors say plainly that because the study is cross-sectional, "causality versus comorbidity cannot be determined" — this is overlap, not a demonstration that depression causes low desire. Depression was defined partly by antidepressant use, which itself lowers desire, so the two exposures are entangled. The MEDLINE record lists the publication type "Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't", indicating unnamed external non-government support. The score is calculated from recorded facts about the source — study design, funding, publication venue, sample size, preregistration — not typed in by an editor.
What is the source for this?
Distressing sexual problems in United States women revisited: prevalence after accounting for depression. — Johannes CB, Clayton AH, Odom DM, Rosen RC, Russo PA, Shifren JL, Monz BU. (2009). Published in: Reputable peer-reviewed journal. DOI: 10.4088/JCP.09m05390gry. The full source is linked on this page so you can read it yourself.
Who paid for this research, and does that matter?
Study design: Cross-sectional study / survey. Funding: Funding not disclosed. Independence from the proponent is not recorded. Industry sponsorship is one of the most reliably measured biases in medicine, which is why funding carries real weight in the score rather than sitting in a footnote.
Is this medical advice?
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.