{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,27]],"date-time":"2026-03-27T20:21:25Z","timestamp":1774642885830,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":59,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,20]],"date-time":"2025-05-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1747699200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Diagnostics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: The presence of autoimmune thyroiditis was found to be associated with an increased prevalence of sexual dysfunction. Women\u2019s sexual health was not investigated in postpartum disorders of the thyroid gland. The aim of this study was to assess female sexual functioning and depressive symptoms in postpartum thyroiditis. Methods: This study compared four groups of non-lactating women who gave birth within 12 months before the beginning of the study: women with postpartum thyroiditis and overt hypothyroidism (group A), women with postpartum thyroiditis and subclinical hypothyroidism (group B), euthyroid females with postpartum thyroiditis (group C) and healthy euthyroid females without thyroid disease (group D). All patients completed questionnaires assessing female sexual function (FSFI), and the presence and severity of depressive symptoms (BDI-II). Moreover, we assessed thyroid peroxidase and thyroglobulin antibodies, as well as serum levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free thyroid hormones, testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), estradiol and prolactin. Results: The mean total FSFI score was lower in women with overt hypothyroidism (22.74 \u00b1 4.12) than in the remaining groups of women, lower in groups B (25.71 \u00b1 3.84) and C (29.67 \u00b1 4.00) than in group D (32.15 \u00b1 2.98), as well as lower in group B than in group C. Compared to healthy controls, both groups of women with postpartum thyroiditis and thyroid hypofunction had lower scores for all domains, while euthyroid patients with postpartum thyroiditis had lower scores for sexual desire, sexual arousal and lubrication. The total BDI-II score was highest in group A (15.6 \u00b1 3.2) and lowest in group D (7.8 \u00b1 3.2). Serum testosterone and DHEAS levels were lower while serum prolactin levels were higher in women with postpartum thyroiditis than in healthy subjects. The lowest testosterone levels (1.02 \u00b1 0.35 nmol\/L) and estradiol levels (190 \u00b1 80 pmol\/L) and the highest prolactin concentration (39.9 \u00b1 13.9 ng\/mL) were found in group A. Conclusions: The obtained results show that postpartum thyroiditis is complicated by multidimensional impairment of female sexual functioning, which is accompanied by mood deterioration. Severity of sexual dysfunction and depressive symptoms in this clinical entity depends on the degree of thyroid autoimmunity and hypothyroidism. It seems that assessment of sexual functioning and mood should be recommended to all women with postpartum thyroiditis.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/diagnostics15101286","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,20]],"date-time":"2025-05-20T11:50:31Z","timestamp":1747741831000},"page":"1286","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Sexual Functioning and Depressive Symptoms in Women with Postpartum Thyroiditis"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9276-4563","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Karolina","family":"Kowalcze","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pediatrics in Bytom, Faculty of Health Sciences in Katowice, Medical University of Silesia, Stefana Batorego 15, 41-902 Bytom, Poland"},{"name":"Department of Pathophysiology, Faculty of Medicine, Academy of Silesia, Rolna 43, 40-555 Katowice, Poland"},{"name":"Department of Pediatrics, Provincial Hospital in Cz\u0119stochowa, PCK 7, 42-200 Cz\u0119stochowa, Poland"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Gaspare","family":"Cucinella","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Villa Sofia Cervello Hospital, University of Palermo, 90146 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4269-4269","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Giuseppe","family":"Gullo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Villa Sofia Cervello Hospital, University of Palermo, 90146 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5454-2620","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Robert","family":"Krysiak","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Internal Medicine and Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Silesia, Medyk\u00f3w 18, 40-752 Katowice, Poland"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1347","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(24)01614-3","article-title":"Hypothyroidism","volume":"404","author":"Taylor","year":"2024","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"101367","DOI":"10.1016\/j.beem.2019.101367","article-title":"Hashimotos\u2019 thyroiditis: Epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinic and therapy","volume":"36","author":"Ragusa","year":"2019","journal-title":"Best Pract. 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