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Genital responsiveness in healthy women with and without sexual arousal disorder . INTRODUCTION Most pharmacological treatments that are currently being developed for women with sexual arousal disorder are aimed at remedying a vasculogenic deficit . AIM This study investigated whether pre- and postmenopausal women with sexual arousal disorder are less genitally responsive to visual sexual stimuli than pre- and postmenopausal women without sexual problems . METHOD Twenty-nine medically healthy women with sexual arousal disorder ( 15 premenopausal and 14 postmenopausal ) , diagnosed using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , 4th Edition ( DSM-IV ) criteria , and 30 age-matched women without sexual problems ( 16 premenopausal and 14 postmenopausal ) were shown sexual stimuli depicting cunnilingus and intercourse . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Genital arousal was assessed as vaginal pulse amplitude ( VPA ) using vaginal photoplethysmography . RESULTS Results showed no significant differences between the two groups in mean and maximum VPA , nor in latency of VPA response . CONCLUSION Women with sexual arousal disorder diagnosed according to DSM-IV criteria were not less genitally responsive to visual sexual stimuli than women without such problems . These findings are in line with previous studies . The sexual problems these women report are clearly not related to their potential to become genitally aroused . We argue that the DSM-IV criteria for sexual arousal disorder are in need of revision . In medically healthy women , impaired genital responsiveness is not a valid diagnostic criterion .
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Intervention_Physical
sexual stimuli depicting cunnilingus and intercourse .
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Intervention_Physical
vaginal photoplethysmography .
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Outcome_Other
Genital responsiveness
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Outcome_Physical
vaginal pulse amplitude ( VPA )
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Outcome_Physical
vaginal photoplethysmography
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Outcome_Physical
mean and maximum VPA
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Outcome_Physical
VPA response
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Participant_Condition
healthy
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Participant_Sex
women
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Participant_Condition
with and without sexual arousal disorder
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Participant_Condition
pre- and postmenopausal
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Participant_Sex
women
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Participant_Condition
sexual arousal disorder
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Participant_Sample-size
Twenty-nine
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Participant_Condition
healthy women
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Participant_Condition
sexual arousal disorder
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Participant_Condition
15 premenopausal
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Participant_Condition
14 postmenopausal
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Participant_Sample-size
30
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Participant_Condition
without sexual problems
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Participant_Sex
Women
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Participant_Condition
healthy
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Participant_Sex
women