Author: Mouras, Harold

Source: Current Medical Imaging Reviews, Volume 2, Number 1, February 2006 , pp. 71-77(7)

Publisher: Bentham Science Publishers

Abstract:

During the last five years, neuroimaging techniques such as Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) appeared as new tools to study the neural correlates of human male sexual arousal (SA). In this paper, some of the main methodological aspects of these studies will be summarized, including the participants, the way to induce sexual arousal within the scanner and the different types of analyses performed. In the second part, some of the cerebral areas that have been related to sexual information processing are presented. Among others, cerebral areas that have been related to cognitive processes involved in SA are first presented: the orbitofrontal cortex and parietal lobules. We then focus on recent studies that concurrently measured cerebral and penile responses by plethysmography. Some cerebral areas where significant correlations were found between the hemodynamic cerebral and the plethysmographic signals are presented. Finally, as the use of different penile plethysmographic methods were referred to in the literature, we consider the prospects of their use for the study of the neural correlates of human male SA.

Keywords: fMRI; PET; human sexual arousal; neural correlates; penile plethysmography

Document Type: Research article

Affiliations: 1: INSERM U742, Universite Pierre et Marie Curie, 9 quai Saint Bernard, 75005 Paris, France.

Publication date: 2006-02-01

More about this publication?

• Current Medical Imaging Reviews publishes frontier reviews on all the latest advances on medical imaging. All relevant areas are covered by the journal, including advances in the diagnosis, instrumentation and therapeutic applications related to all modern medical imaging techniques.
  
  The journal's aim is to publish the highest quality review articles dedicated to research in the field. The journal is essential reading for all clinicians and researchers involved in medical imaging and diagnosis.

Related content

• In this: publication
• By this: publisher
• In this Subject: Radiology & Imaging
• By this author: Mouras, Harold

Website © Publishing Technology. Article copyright remains with the publisher, society or author(s) as specified within the article.

• Terms and conditions
• Privacy policy
• Information for advertisers