Androgen Deprivation Therapy in Pedophilic Disorder: Exploring the Physical, Psychological, and Sexual Effects From a Patient's Perspective.

The use of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) shows promising results in the treatment of paraphilic disorders. Although the side effects of ADT can be intrusive, there is no research into the experiences of patients with pedophilic disorder themselves. This research aims to explore the psychological, physical, and sexual experiences of ADT from the perspective of sex offenders diagnosed with pedophilic disorder. Twelve semistructured in-depth interviews with male adults diagnosed with pedophilic disorder were conducted using a phenomenological approach. Six of the 12 respondents were on luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonists and the remaining on anti-androgens. Half of each group were inpatients, and the other half outpatients. The respondents were recruited in collaboration with one psychiatric hospital. The data were analyzed with help of a qualitative software application NVivo. The respondents described experiences on the use of ADT on a physical, psychological, and sexual level. The most prominent physical side effects mentioned were bone loss, weight gain, and breast formation. The respondents generally described a positive influence of the medication on their well-being. They felt more relaxed and experienced a reduction in frequency and intensity of sexual fantasies, anger, and aggressive feelings in general. In addition, all the respondents noticed a lower frequency of sexual contact and masturbation. Most of the participants experienced the use of ADT as a mandatory decision made by the treating psychiatrist. This study recommends informing patients and their loved ones on the potential side effects of ADT. Furthermore, training forensic counselors on potential side effects of ADT and methods to alleviate them can promote the dissemination of information and will encourage the informed consent procedure. This is the first qualitative study about the experiences of ADT in men diagnosed with pedophilic disorder in Belgium. Future studies should include more than one treatment center. The majority of the participants had a positive attitude towards ADT in general. Boons L, Jeandarme I, Vervaeke G. Androgen Deprivation Therapy in Pedophilic Disorder: Exploring the Physical, Psychological, and Sexual Effects From a Patient's Perspective. J Sex Med 2021;18:353-362. Copyright © 2020 International Society for Sexual Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Citation

Lena Boons, Inge Jeandarme, Geert Vervaeke. Androgen Deprivation Therapy in Pedophilic Disorder: Exploring the Physical, Psychological, and Sexual Effects From a Patient's Perspective. The journal of sexual medicine. 2021 Feb;18(2):353-362

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PMID: 33468446

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