Erectile dysfunction (ED), also referred to as impotence, is a form of sexual dysfunction in males characterized by the persistent or recurring inability to achieve or maintain a penile erection with sufficient rigidity and duration for satisfactory sexual activity. It is the most common sexual problem in males and can cause psychological distress due to its impact on self-image and sexual relationships. Majority of ED cases are attributed to physical risk factors and predictive factors. These factors can be categorized as vascular, neurological, local penile, hormonal, and drug-induced. Notable predictors of ED include aging, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, high blood pressure, obesity, abnormal lipid levels in the blood, hypogonadism, smoking, depression, and medication use. Approximately 10% of cases are linked to psychosocial factors, encompassing conditions like depression, stress, and problems within relationships.
Vaginismus is a condition in which involuntary muscle spasm interferes with vaginal intercourse or other penetration of the vagina. This often results in pain with attempts at sex. Often it begins when vaginal intercourse is first attempted.
Premature ejaculation (PE) is a male sexual dysfunction that occurs when a male expels semen soon after beginning sexual activity, and with minimal penile stimulation. It has also been called early ejaculation, rapid ejaculation, rapid climax, premature climax and (historically) ejaculatio praecox. There is no uniform cut-off defining "premature", but a consensus of experts at the International Society for Sexual Medicine endorsed a definition of around one minute after penetration. The International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) applies a cut-off of 15 seconds from the beginning of sexual intercourse.
Hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD), hyposexuality or inhibited sexual desire (ISD) is sometimes considered a sexual dysfunction, and is characterized as a lack or absence of sexual fantasies and desire for sexual activity, as judged by a clinician. For this to be regarded as a disorder, it must cause marked distress or interpersonal difficulties and not be better accounted for by another mental disorder, a drug, or some other medical condition. A person with ISD will not start, or respond to their partner's desire for, sexual activity. HSDD affects approximately 10% of all pre-menopausal women in the United States, or about 6 million women.
Frenulum breve, or short frenulum, is a condition in which the frenulum of the penis, which is an elastic band of tissue under the glans penis that connects to the foreskin and helps contract it over the glans, is too short and thus restricts the movement of the foreskin. The frenulum should normally be sufficiently long and supple to allow for the full retraction of the foreskin so that it lies smoothly back on the shaft of the erect penis.
Sexual arousal disorder is characterized by a lack or absence of sexual fantasies and desire for sexual activity in a situation that would normally produce sexual arousal, or the inability to attain or maintain typical responses to sexual arousal. The disorder is found in the DSM-IV. The condition should not be confused with a sexual desire disorder.
Sexual medicine or psychosexual medicine as defined by Masters and Johnsons in their classic Textbook of Sexual Medicine, is "that branch of medicine that focuses on the evaluation and treatment of sexual disorders, which have a high prevalence rate." Examples of disorders treated with sexual medicine are erectile dysfunction, hypogonadism, and prostate cancer. Sexual medicine often uses a multidisciplinary approach involving physicians, mental health professionals, social workers, and sex therapists. Sexual medicine physicians often approach treatment with medicine and surgery, while sex therapists often focus on behavioral treatments.
Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness and the treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise. Although most sports teams have employed team physicians for many years, it is only since the late 20th century that sports medicine emerged as a distinct field of health care. In some countries, sports medicine is a recognized medical specialty. In the majority of countries where sports medicine is recognized and practiced, it is a physician (non-surgical) specialty, but in some, it can equally be a surgical or non-surgical medical specialty, and also a specialty field within primary care. In other contexts, the field of sports medicine encompasses the scope of both medical specialists as well as allied health practitioners who work in the field of sport, such as physiotherapists, athletic trainers, podiatrists and exercise physiologists.
Medicalization is the process by which human conditions and problems come to be defined and treated as medical conditions, and thus become the subject of medical study, diagnosis, prevention, or treatment. Medicalization can be driven by new evidence or hypotheses about conditions; by changing social attitudes or economic considerations; or by the development of new medications or treatments.
Adolescent medicine, also known as adolescent and young adult medicine, is a medical subspecialty that focuses on care of patients who are in the adolescent period of development. This period begins at puberty and lasts until growth has stopped, at which time adulthood begins. Typically, patients in this age range will be in the last years of middle school up until college graduation. In developed nations, the psychosocial period of adolescence is extended both by an earlier start, as the onset of puberty begins earlier, and a later end, as patients require more years of education or training before they reach economic independence from their parents.
A vibrator, sometimes described as a massager, is a sex toy that is used on the body to produce pleasurable sexual stimulation. There are many different shapes and models of vibrators. Most modern vibrators contain an electric-powered device which pulsates or throbs. Vibrators can be used for both solo play and partnered play by one or more people. Devices exist to be used by couples to stimulate the genitals of both partners. They can be applied to erogenous zones, such as the vulva, vagina, penis, scrotum, or anus, for sexual stimulation, for the release of sexual frustration and to achieve orgasm. Vibrators may be recommended by sex therapists for women who have difficulty reaching orgasm through masturbation or intercourse.
Mechanotherapy is a type of medical therapeutics in which treatment is given by manual or mechanical means. It was defined in 1890 as “the employment of mechanical means for the cure of disease”. Mechanotherapy employs mechanotransduction in order to stimulate tissue repair and remodelling.
The National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior is a decade-long nationally representative study of human sexual behavior. The research has been conducted in the United States by researchers from the Center for Sexual Health Promotion in the School of Public Health at Indiana University in Bloomington. Time magazine called the NSSHB "the most comprehensive survey of its kind in nearly two decades and the first to include teenagers." Former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders has written the following about NSSHB findings: "These data are important for keeping the nation moving forward in the area of sexual health and well being. In the absence of scientific data available to construct an accurate and up-to-date view, opinions in the field of sexual science can vary widely from person to person."
A medical journal is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that communicates medical information to physicians, other health professionals. Journals that cover many medical specialties are sometimes called general medical journals.
Sexual anhedonia, also known as pleasure dissociative orgasmic disorder, is a condition in which an individual cannot feel pleasure from an orgasm. It is thought to be a variant of hypoactive sexual desire disorder.
MysteryVibe is a British-American firm that focuses on sexual health devices. In 2023, their laboratory was featured in Popular Science and recognized by The Guardian as the "only facility in vibrator research and development in the UK". According to Femtech Insider, they are the "first pleasure-focused brand to offer FSA & HSA eligible vibrators". They beat Apple Watch at the 2018 Design Week Awards.
Cindy Meston is a Canadian-American clinical psychologist well-known for her research on the psychophysiology of female sexual arousal. She is a Full Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, Director of the Female Sexual Psychophysiology Laboratory, and author of Why Women Have Sex. In 2016, the BBC, London, England named Meston one of the 100 most influential and inspirational women in the world.
John Orchard FACSEP is an Australian sport and exercise medicine physician, notable for advocating for rule changes in sport to improve player safety. In 2020 he was awarded a Member of the Order of the Order of Australia for significant service to sports medicine, particularly cricket. He was a member of the Australian government advisory group for sport responding to COVID, representing professional sport as the Chief Medical Officer for Cricket Australia and was instrumental in cricket's response to COVID. During 2023, he worked as the General Medical Officer for Australia at the FIFA Women's World Cup.
Karim M. Khan is a former sport and exercise medicine physician who served as editor in chief of the British Journal of Sports Medicine from 2008-2020. He was awarded the Officer of the Order of Australia in 2019 for "distinguished service to sport and exercise medicine and to the promotion of physical activity for community health" and an Honorary Fellowship of the Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine (UK) in 2014.
The Orchard Sports Injury and Illness Classification System (OSIICS), previously OSICS, is an injury classification system for sports injuries and illnesses. It was first created in 1993 and is free for sporting teams and competitions to use. It is one of the two major Sports Injury classification systems in use worldwide; the other is the Sports Medicine Diagnostic Coding System.
