Female Sexual Arousal Disorder - Central Nervous System and Spinal Chord Pathways

Neural and spinal components of female sexual arousal anatomy have been analyzed in animals and spinal cord-injured (SCI) women only. There is strong prove for the occurrence of sexual arousal and orgasm in women with SCI who have an intact S5 S5 reflex arc. Not only were genital and extragenital responses to vibrotactile stimulation similar between able-bodied and SCI subjects in a recent study of Sipski et al., subjective descriptions of sensations were indistinguishable between groups. SCI subjects did take longer than ablebodied subjects to reach orgasm. Whipple and Komisaruk indicated that, on the basis of their studies in SCI women in whom cervical stimulant was applied, the vagus nerve conveys a sensory pathway from the cervix to the brain, bypassing the spinal cord, which is responsible for the preservation of sexual arousal and orgasm in these women.

There persist large gaps in our understanding of the central nervous control of female sexual function. Most of the animal work refers to receptive behavior in female rats and very little to the control of genital responses. According to McKenna, the autonomic and somatic innervation of the genitals is based upon spinal mechanisms, regulated by supraspinal sites. Sensory information from the genitals project to interneurons in the lower spinal cord, which possibly generate the coordinated activity of sexual responses. The spinal reflex mechanisms are under inhibitory (through serotonergic activity) and excitatory (through adrenergic activity) control from supraspinal nuclei. These nuclei are highly interconnected. Many of them also receive genital sensory information. It is likely that during sexual activity, sensory activation of supraspinal sites causes a reduction in the inhibition, and an increase in the excitation of the spinal reflexive mechanisms by the supraspinal sites. Higher order sensory and cognitive processes may modulate the activity of supraspinal nuclei controlling sexual function.

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David Crawford is the CEO and owner of a male eyaculation company known as Male Enhancement Group which is dedicated to researching and comparing male enhancement products in order to determine which male enhancement product is safer and more effective than other products on the market. Copyright 2010 David Crawford of paralyzed penis This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

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