Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
European Journal of Plastic Surgery, cilt.45, sa.6, ss.951-957, 2022 (ESCI)
© 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.Background: Vaginoplasty is among female genital cosmetic surgery methods, which has increasingly gained popularity among women seeking a solution to enhance their sexual functioning. The objective of this study was to evaluate the postoperative self-esteem, sexual satisfaction, coping with stress, and defense mechanisms in married Turkish women who underwent vaginoplasty surgery. Methods: A total of 106 women who underwent vaginoplasty and 106 healthy control subjects were evaluated. Study data were collected through face-to-face interviews using “Personal Information Form,” “Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory,” “Sexual Satisfaction Scale,” “Coping Responses Inventory,” and “Defense Style Questionnaire” and compared between the two groups. Results: The mean Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory score was significantly higher in the vaginoplasty group compared to the controls (p < 0.001). The mean ego-focused sub-dimension score of the Sexual Satisfaction Scale was significantly higher in the control group (p = 0.005), while the mean logistic analysis sub-dimension score of the Coping Responses Inventory was significantly higher in the vaginoplasty group (p = 0.002). There was a statistically significant positive correlation between self-esteem and mature defenses in both the vaginoplasty and control groups (p = 0.028, p = 0.020, respectively). The correlation between the self-esteem and immature defenses was significantly negative in both groups (for both p < 0.001). Conclusions: The main results of this study indicate a higher self-esteem and sexual satisfaction in women undergoing vaginoplasty. In addition, the use of mature defense mechanisms was also higher among these women compared to healthy control subjects. These results show the importance of both preoperative and postoperative psychiatric evaluations in women undergoing cosmetic genital surgeries. Level of evidence: Level II, Risk/Prognostic.