Body Image and Sexual Life in Patients Receiving Peritoneal Dialysis Treatment: A Descriptive Study from Turkey

This study aimed to determine the body image and sexual experiences of patients receiving peritoneal dialysis treatment. This is a descriptive and relationship-seeking study. The study was conducted with 70 individuals receiving peritoneal dialysis treatment. The population of the study consisted of patients who continued their peritoneal dialysis treatment, and who could be reached by the snowball sampling method. The sample was determined with 0.85 power, 0.677 effect size, and a 0.05 margin of error. The data were collected using the Sociodemographic Introduction Form, the Body Image Scale, and the Arizona Sexual Experiences Scale. The mean body image scale (BIS) score of the participants was 113.84 ± 26.71, the Arizona Sexual Experiences Scale (ASEX) score was 17.37 ± 5.11, the duration of peritoneal dialysis was 3.09 ± 1.88 years, and the frequency of daily dialysis changes was 3.43 ± 1.25. The participants’ body image is moderate. PD patients experience sexual dysfunction. The most important result of the study is that PD patients have sexual dysfunction, and there is a negative relationship between body image and sexual dysfunction ( p