Introduction Sexual arousal is a complex series of psycho-neuro-vascular events. There have been few clinical studies on the central control of male sexual arousal. Recently, a preliminary study was performed to identify brain areas activated in healthy males with visual sexual stimulation using PET. However, there is no clinical report to use fMRI in evaluating the brain region associated with...

Sexual activity involves excitement with high arousal and pleasure as typical features of emotions. Brain activations specifically related to erotic feelings and those related to general emotional processing are therefore hard to disentangle. Using fMRI in 21 healthy subjects (11 males and 10 females), we investigated regions that show activations specifically related to the viewing of sexually...

Stress and anxiety are commonly thought to be detrimental to sexual function. Several studies in both the human and animal literature, however, have found that inducing anxiety can enhance sexual function in women. The mechanisms that explain a negative relationship between physical and psychological stress and sexual functioning are well documented, but little is known about how stress or anxi...

Sexual activity is a multifaceted activity, involving complex interactions between the nervous system, the endocrine system, the vascular system and a variety of structures that are instrumental in sexual excitement, intercourse and satisfaction. Sexual function has three components i.e., desire, arousal and orgasm. Many sexual dysfunctions can be categorized according to the phase of sexual re...

Data from a non-clinical sample of 540 heterosexual women were used to examine the relationships between scores on the Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women (SESII-W) and ratings of current sexual problems, lifetime arousal difficulty, lifetime orgasm difficulty, and lifetime problems with low sexual interest. Multiple regression analyses also included several demographic/back...

Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) facilitates blood flow, influences nitric oxide systems, and has a relaxant effect on smooth muscle tissue. These processes are important to the sexual response in women and, hence, it is feasible that GBE may have a therapeutic effect. The present study was the first to provide an empirical examination of the effects of both short- and long-term GBE administration o...

PURPOSE We assessed the relationships between bladder symptoms, demographic, and medical history variables and sexual dysfunction in women with overactive bladder (OAB) disorder. MATERIALS AND METHODS Seventy-eight women diagnosed with OAB completed self-administered questionnaires related to overall heath status, bladder function, and sexual function. Data were compiled for questionnaire res...

The assessment of sexual arousal and sexual interest patterns have become significant elements in the detection and treatment of sexual disorders. This study investigated whether there was a relationship between sexual interest (utilizing viewing time) and sexual arousal (utilizing plethysmography) in a clinical sample of sexual offenders with diagnosed pedophilic interests. Thirty nine partic...

This article reviews what is currently known about how men and women respond to the presentation of visual sexual stimuli. While the assumption that men respond more to visual sexual stimuli is generally empirically supported, previous reports of sex differences are confounded by the variable content of the stimuli presented and measurement techniques. We propose that the cognitive processing s...