LAUSR

This research, which is a cross sectional-descriptive study, aims to evaluate the self-esteem and sexual satisfaction of patients aged between 18 and 70 who had bowel stoma and applied to a Stoma Therapy Polyclinic of a university hospital. The study was conducted between 15 October 2015 and 15 January 2016, with 59 patients who applied to the Stoma Therapy Polyclinic and met the research criteria. The data were collected through the Patient Information Form, Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, and Golombok Rust Inventory of Sexual Satisfaction (GRISS) Female-Male forms. Analysis of the data was performed using Pearson Chi Square test, Fisher Exact, Mann–Whitney U test and Kruskal–Wallis test. Mean score for the patients’ total self-esteem was found to be 3.27 ± 2.02, and total GRISS mean score was 58.80 ± 16.44. There was a positive, significant relationship between women’s self-esteem and frequency, communication and satisfaction sub-dimensions of GRISS (p = 0 < 0.05). No significant difference was detected between women’s avoidance, touch, vaginismus and anorgasmia scores and their self-esteem (p > 0.05). As for the male patients, there was a positive, significant relationship between their self-esteem and frequency, communication, satisfaction, avoidance, impotence, and premature ejaculation sub-dimensions of GRISS (p = 0 < 0.05). Results of the present study show that patients with stoma had moderate levels of self-esteem, they experienced above-moderate levels of sexual problems and there were no significant differences between male and female patients in terms of self-esteem mean scores and sexual functions (except for frequency scores).