Human Sexuality – Function and Dysfunction Flashcards
How common is sexual dysfunction?
Roughly 40% of women and 30% of men report some kind of sexual dysfunction.
Most of sexual behavior is __________.
learned
What are Masters’ four phases of sex?
Excitement
Plateau
Orgasm
Resolution
(Helen Kaplan added the desire phase prior to excitement.)
There are no measurable physiologic changes during the ___________ phase.
desire
Disorders of the desire phase are most often due to ___________.
performance anxiety or aversion
What physiologic changes occur during sex in women?
Clitoral engorgement
Vaginal expansion
Uterine elevation
Nipple erection
What causes erection?
Relaxation of the penile arteries and the smooth muscle of the corpus cavernosa (mediated by NO release on endothelium which raises cGMP)
During orgasm, there are rhythmic contractions of the _____________.
perineal muscles
During orgasm, there are about _________ contractions of ejaculatory fluids.
3 to 7
What percent of Americans aged 40 to 80 report that physicians had asked them about sexual concerns?
14%
What questions are important to consider asking in a sexual history?
- Are you in a sexual relationship and how often do you have sexual intercourse?
- For women:
- Do you have pain with intercourse?
- How often do you have an orgasm with intercourse?
• For men:
- Do you have trouble getting or maintaining an erection?
- Do you ever ejaculate earlier or later than you want?
In developing a differential diagnosis for sexual dysfunction, how should you proceed?
- First, try to determine where in the phases of sexual intercourse the problem is occurring.
- Second, look for associated conditions/problems.
Describe the general presentation of sexual aversion disorders.
A person wants to have sex –as evidenced by stated desire or pursuit of sexual things –but when they get into a situation in which they might have sex they shut down.
What things need to be present for an official diagnosis of erectile dysfunction?
- Difficulty maintaining or getting an erection or insufficient rigidity
- Cause distress
- Present for at least six months
- Not explained by another disorder
What is dyspareunia?
Pain with intercourse
Vaginismus is the ______________.
spasming of vaginal muscles with intercourse; it is associated with religiosity or negative attitudes about sex
What four categories of sex therapy are there?
- Sensate focus exercises
- Bibliotherapy
- Marital therapy
- Pharmacotherapy
What is sensate focus?
It is a process of doing defined behaviors to get couples unstuck from the repetitive, stylized behaviors that are problematic.
Bibliotherapy is most successful in ____________.
women having trouble with orgasm
In women with arousal disorder, there is usually ___________________.
a mismatch between what the woman reports and what objective measurements record; for instance, one study showed that many women who watched an erotic video had increased blood flow to their vaginas but reported no arousal
Describe the role of testosterone in sexual dysfunction.
Testosterone supplementation has been shown to cause small improvements in female sexual dysfunction, but the risks do not outweigh the benefits.
One cause of vaginal dryness is _____________.
excessive use of anticongestants
Sexual physiology is not a _______________.
learned behavior
The length of the ____________ phase in men tends to get prolonged with age.
resolution
