Background: Because of the sensitive nature of the topic, female sexuality is not a common subject in Egyptian medical literature. The present work is a trial to assess domains of sexual functioning (e.g. sexual arousal, orgasm, satisfaction) in an Egyptian sample.
Participants and methods: The participants were 313 married women attending or working in Family Planning Centers in three cities: a face to face questionnaire was administrated to all participants. The questions covered many aspects of female sexuality avoiding topics of taboo, for example homosexuality.
Results: Most women were circumcised. The most common coital frequency was 1-2 and 3-6/week, which decreased during pregnancy, after delivery, and with aging. Most women reported no change in libido throughout the menstrual cycle. Achieving an orgasm was reported frequently by the majority of women and they commonly faked an orgasm if they did not achieve it. Affirmative responses on premarital masturbation and the practice of oral sex were uncommon. The missionary position was the most commonly used position and women were largely satisfied with their sexual life as a whole.
Conclusion: Despite economic difficulties, the practice of female genital cutting, and male dominance, the studied women viewed their sexual life positively.