Date:18/09/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/09/18/stories/2006091821840300.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

`Sexual abuse may affect child's mental health'

Staff Reporter

22nd national meet of sexology concludes

Bangalore: Sexual abuse in childhood could be one of the reasons for adults to have problems in their marital life later and sexual medicine practitioners should look into this aspect of the health of their patients and deal with such problems sensitively, Shekhar Seshadri, professor of psychiatry at the National Institute for Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), said here on Sunday.

Speaking on child sexual abuse in the context of sexual health on the concluding day of the 22nd National Conference of Sexology organised by the Council of Sex Education and Parenthood International (CSEPI), Dr. Seshadri said child sexual abuse could have a serious impact on the well being and mental health and affect the sexuality and the personality of a victim later.

He added sexology was usually confined to problems of sexuality in adulthood and dealt mostly with issues of male sexual problems. He said people working in the realm of sexual medicine should also think in terms of the needs of sexual minorities and their orientation, special populations, including marginalised sections, children who had been trafficked for sex work.

Prathima Murthy, professor of psychiatry at NIMHANS who heads the De-addiction unit there, said that alcohol and drugs decreased sexual functioning even though there was a misconception that it had a positive effect.

High-risk sexual behaviour and sexual violence were directly related to use of alcohol as it tended to lower inhibitions and those under the effect of alcohol were more likely to indulge in high-risk behaviour, she added.