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Female Sexual Function Index Short Version: A MsFLASH Item Response Analysis

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Abstract

The Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) is a psychometrically sound and popular 19-item self-report measure, but its length may preclude its use in studies with multiple outcome measures, especially when sexual function is not a primary endpoint. Only one attempt has been made to create a shorter scale, resulting in the Italian FSFI-6, later translated into Spanish and Korean without further psychometric analysis. Our study evaluated whether a subset of items on the 19-item English-language FSFI would perform as well as the full-length FSFI in peri- and postmenopausal women. We used baseline data from 898 peri- and postmenopausal women recruited from multiple communities, ages 42–62 years, and enrolled in randomized controlled trials for vasomotor symptom management. Goals were to (1) create a psychometrically sound, shorter version of the FSFI for use in peri- and postmenopausal women as a continuous measure and (2) compare it to the Italian FSFI-6. Results indicated that a 9-item scale provided more information than the FSFI-6 across a spectrum of sexual functioning, was able to capture sample variability, and showed sufficient range without floor or ceiling effects. All but one of the items from the Italian 6-item version were included in the 9-item version. Most omitted FSFI items focused on frequency of events or experiences. When assessment of sexual function is a secondary endpoint and subject burden related to questionnaire length is a priority, the 9-item FSFI may provide important information about sexual function in English-speaking peri- and postmenopausal women.

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the National Institutes of Health as a cooperative agreement issued by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), the Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH), and Grants U01AG032656, U01AG032659, U01AG032669, U01AG032682, U01AG032699, and U01AG032700 from the NIA. At Indiana University, the project was funded in part with support from the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, Grant UL1RR02571 from the NIH, National Center for Research Resources, Clinical and Translational Sciences Award.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Science of Nursing Care, School of Nursing, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    Janet S. Carpenter

  2. Group Health Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA

    Salene M. W. Jones & Katherine M. Newton

  3. Department of Health Behavior, College of Public Health, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA

    Christina R. Studts

  4. Psychological & Brain Sciences, The Kinsey Institute, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA

    Julia R. Heiman

  5. Departments of Obstetrics/Gynecology and Epidemiology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA

    Susan D. Reed

  6. Data Coordinating Center, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA

    Katherine A. Guthrie & Joseph C. Larson

  7. Center for Women’s Mental Health, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Lee S. Cohen

  8. Departments of Obstetrics/Gynecology and Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Ellen W. Freeman

  9. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    R. Jane Lau & Lee A. Learman

  10. Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    Jan L. Shifren

  11. School of Nursing, Indiana University, 600 Barnhill Drive NU 340G, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Janet S. Carpenter

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  1. Janet S. Carpenter
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  2. Salene M. W. Jones
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  3. Christina R. Studts
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  4. Julia R. Heiman
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  5. Susan D. Reed
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  6. Katherine M. Newton
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  8. Joseph C. Larson
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  9. Lee S. Cohen
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  10. Ellen W. Freeman
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  11. R. Jane Lau
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  12. Lee A. Learman
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  13. Jan L. Shifren
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Correspondence to Janet S. Carpenter.

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Carpenter, J.S., Jones, S.M.W., Studts, C.R. et al. Female Sexual Function Index Short Version: A MsFLASH Item Response Analysis. Arch Sex Behav 45, 1897–1905 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-016-0804-5

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