CA18124 - European Sexual Medicine Network (ESMN)

Sexual medicine is an immense field that deals with disorders of sexual health of individuals throughout the course of life. Due to its broad scope, a comprehensive approach to the subject is largely non-existent: research is in short supply and few medical educators are qualified to teach the subject. Different clinical, biological and psychosocial disciplines deal with the treatment of sexual disorders, but they often do this only partially due to the particular discipline. Clinical, technological and socioeconomic progress, along with societal changes, have caused general interest in sexual health to increase and change. Sexual medicine also has to pay more attention to modern-day developments. Incidents of mass sexual violence amplify the need for novel research on sexually deviant behaviour. Mass media, including social media, have an immense impact on contemporary viewpoints on sexuality by younger generations. Research on prevalence, pathophysiology, and optimal treatment of sexual dysfunction associated with chronic illness, including cancer, becomes more important. Importantly, too, the aging population compels medical and psychosocial sciences to deal increasingly with sexual health  of older people.

The Action aims to exchange research results produced by different disciplines in order to find commonalities in concepts and approaches to sexual medicine. This will serve as the foundation for identifying shared concepts and definitions, and the start of joint interdisciplinary research, with a particular focus on including young researchers. It will also form the conceptual groundwork for developing interdisciplinary outlines and curricula for further university education at a European standard of qualification and recognition.