Elderly Men Sexuality in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso)

Background: In general, sexuality is a taboo subject. It is more so in elderly people, as it is believed that they do not complain about sexual disorder. Objective: To analyse the sexual activity of elderly men in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study on the sexual activity of men aged at least 60 years old. The study was carried out in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, from 1 June to 31 August 2014. All consenting males who were aged 60 and above at the time of the study were included. Results: We contacted 652 men, but only 200 responded i.e. a response rate of 30.67%. The age of the respondents was between 60 years and 89 years with a mean age of 66.38 ± 5.72 years. 80.15% of the respondents had at least one sexual intercourse in a month. Erection was considered satisfactory or very satisfactory in 45.8% (60/131) of respondents and 63.36% of them always had orgasm during sexual intercourse. Premature ejaculation was noted in 23.66% of respondents, while a decline in libido was noted in 82.44% of them. Conclusion: This study which is the first of its kind in Burkina Faso has helped reveal the importance of sexuality in the lives of elderly men.

Open Journal of Urology derly man also retire sexually? In developed countries, some studies have addressed the issue of the sexuality of elderly men. These studies revealed that elderly men continue to live their sexuality despite the difficulties they may encounter [2]. In Burkina Faso, even if the subject is taboo, it is also true that there is a real demand for care by the elderly in relation to sexuality, as evidenced by the increasing number of elderly patients, especially the educated ones who complain about it during consultations. Thus, we found it necessary to assess the sexuality of elderly men in the city of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

Methods
This is a descriptive cross-sectional study concerning the sexuality of men aged at least 60 years old. The study was carried out in Ouagadougou from 1 st June to 31 st August, 2014. All consenting males who were 60 years and above were included. The data were collected through a pre-established questionnaire and administered in two ways. In the first approach the participant filled the questionnaire himself if he could read and write. In the second approach, the surveyor filled the questionnaire for the participant. The variables studied included the response rate, socio-demographic characteristics, perception about sexual activity, frequency of sexual activity and sexual dysfunction. Sexual dysfunction is disorders of desire, erection and ejaculation. The data collected were analysed using the statistical software SPSS version 21. Categorical variables were presented in frequencies and percentages. The continuous variables were expressed as means ± standard deviation. The exact Fisher test was used to assess the correlation between two variables and the P-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results
Over the 652 men contacted, only 200 responded i.e. a response rate of 30.67%.
One hundred and thirty one (131) men (65.50%) filled the questionnaire prop-

Discussion
The questions have been translated into local languages for those who could not read or write. The understanding may be different and the answers may be less sincere than if the questionnaire was filled by the elderly men themselves. However, the use of the pre-test helped to harmonize the questions and made the understanding easy.
The low response rate (30.67%) in our study is not specific to the African context. Hughes in the USA [3] and Auld et al. [4] in Canada reported response rates of 24.9% and 42% respectively. Indeed, in most cultures sexuality remains confidential, and that could explain the reluctance of some people to answer questions regarding sexual activity. In our study, 39.69% of respondents reported having difficulties to discuss about sex with those around them. On the other hand, in developed countries, the media have greatly contributed to changing the mores and making sexuality less taboo [5].
Does sexual activity die with the advent of old age? It is true that blunting of sexual activity appears with aging. In our study 82.44% of respondents had a decrease in libido. In the literature, it is unanimously agreed that there is a decline in sexual desire as men get older [1]. Indeed, the age-related decrease in andro- Kew-Kim [14] who reported a prevalence of 25% and 28% respectively. Premature ejaculation is usually due to anxiety.
Should the elderly man consult for something he considers as a taboo? Only 19.85% of the participants had consulted for their sexual problems. This rate is low even in developed countries [10]. These results confirm once again the taboo nature of sexuality for elderly men. In Africa, there is a lack of information on the possibilities of medical assistance. Thus, elderly men in Burkina Faso resort to traditional healers and to self-medication.

Conclusion
This study is the first of its kind in Burkina Faso; it revealed the importance of sexuality in the life of elderly men. Problems associated with sexuality in the elderly men are numerous and pose a great challenge to the patients and the society at large. The medical profession and public authorities should now take these pathologies into account in the various health development programs.