[Psychotherapy for sexual dysfunctions and desire disorders].

Sexual problems do not always require specific psychotherapy. If missing or wrong sexual information is the main cause, sexual counselling can be sufficient. We define "sex-psychotherapy" as the methods which are based on Masters and Johnson as well as other symptom-focused and experience- oriented (exercise) psychotherapeutic methods for sexually disturbed couples and singles. These methods have significantly improved the treatment of sexual dysfunctions. In group- and in couple-settings they have proven to be effective in reducing sexual symptoms and improving sexual satisfaction and partnership-satisfaction. Long-term studies showed that sex-psycho- therapy leads to a stable improvement in sexual satisfaction, whereas the reduction of sexual symptoms is less stable. Therefore sex-psychotherapy should be combined with "relapse-prevention" methods. A number of sexual disorders are caused by psychological and organic factors; they need both psychotherapy and medical treatment. This is of special importance in elderly men and in women with symptoms of dyspareunia.