Clinical Presentations of Female Hypersexuality on a Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic in Turkey: A Retrospective Analysis of Patients in the Concept of Diagnosis and Trauma

Abstract

Abstract Hypersexual behavior is a concept that is not included in the DSM-5, although it is encountered frequently in clinical practice. Cumulative evidence shows that childhood sexual abuse can play a significant role in hypersexuality cases. In this study, female patients with hypersexuality were retrospectively analyzed in terms of sociodemographic and clinical variables in 2020. 21 patients were diagnosed with hypersexual disorder according to Kafka’s proposed criteria. The mean age of the patients was 36.1 ± 9.0. Most of the patients had a history of sexual trauma. The most significant focus of this study was the diagnostic conversion from bipolar affective disorder to post-traumatic stress disorder. Post-traumatic stress symptoms directly affect hypersexual behavior through the mediation of depression, shame, and guilt. It is crucial to avoid assessing hypersexuality as a categorical symptom and pathological at first, and patients should be evaluated with their sociocultural aspects.