It makes sense when you think about it: Like many patients with asthma who experience problems with exercise, two-thirds of patients with asthma find that symptoms interfere with their sex lives. Yet, many patients suffer in silence.

Ilan H. Meyer, PhD, of the Harlem Lung Center at Columbia University’s Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health and Harlem Hospital Center in New York City, was the lead researcher of this study. He noted: “There’s a surprising lack of attention to this problem. With asthma on the rise, quality of life issues such as sexual activity deserve more attention.”

Dr. Meyer and his colleagues surveyed 353 adult patients about whether their asthma had interfered with their sexual functioning during the two-week period prior to a visit to the Emergency Department at Harlem Hospital for their asthma. Only one-third of patients said their sex life had not been affected.

Almost half (47 percent) of patients found that their asthma symptoms interfered with sexual activity with the severity of problems ranging from minimal to total limitation. Nineteen percent said their sexual activity was very or totally limited, 16 percent experienced moderate or some limitation, and 12 percent had little limitation. Nineteen percent of patients reported that they did not engage in sex at all.

Jean G. Ford, MD, director of the Harlem Lung Center and principal investigator of this study, which was funded by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, observed: “Our results indicate that sexual dysfunction is common among asthmatic patients. Physicians should ask asthmatic patients about their sexual functioning as a potential indicator of asthma that is not well controlled. Additional research is needed to determine whether such sexual dysfunction simply represents exercise-induced asthma, or whether other mechanisms contribute to it.”

Known as the REACH Study (Reducing Emergency Care in Harlem), this study looked at the quality of life among patients with asthma. Patients were given a questionnaire that included one question about limitation in sexual functioning. Lower-income patients and patients who were older tended to have greater limitations while gender appeared to have no impact.

Not surprisingly, patients with more severe disease were more likely to have limitations as were patients with depression. What researchers don’t know, however, is whether patients are depressed because of the limitations in their sexual activity, or vice versa. According to Dr. Meyer, “Maybe patients are depressed because of the limits asthma places on their lives, or maybe the depression itself contributes to the limited activity.”

Dr. Meyer believes research should address whether similar measures that are used to manage exercise-induced asthma, such as taking medications prior to exercise and changing activities, might also be useful for these patients. Learning more about the reasons these patients have difficulty is key to finding solutions, and there are a number of factors that could be involved. In addition to physical exertion, exposure to allergens such as those found in bedding, and emotional factors may also play a role. Other diseases that the patient might have, for example, hypertension or diabetes could be involved as well.

Dr. Meyer added, “Patients shouldn’t be shy about bringing up this problem with their doctor. It’s important that patients understand that asthma can have implications on sexual activity. Working with their doctor, they can find solutions.” Dr. Ford agreed, stating, “The patient should talk to their doctor who can then review their clinical history” to help them identify the cause of their problem and ways to deal with it.

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