Neurogenic ejaculatory disorders: focus on current and future treatments
Abstract
Ejaculation is a complex and still poorly understood neurological mechanism, at both spinal and cerebral levels as it is closely associated with orgasm. Physiologically, ejaculation is defined as the expulsion of seminal fluid from the urethral meatus and consists of two phases, namely emission and expulsion. Ejaculation is mediated by a spinal control center, referred to as a spinal pattern generator that coordinates sympathetic, parasympathetic and motor (somatic) outflows, integrating the latter with the inputs from the supraspinal sites in brainstem, hypothalamus and preoptic area. Premature ejaculation (PE) is the most common sexual dysfunction among young men, and it has been considered mostly psychogenic in origin, although it can be associated to diverse urological and neurological diseases. On the contrary, retrograde ejaculation and anejaculation are predominantly related to organic causes, particularly to neurogenic ones. Since ejaculation is mostly a spinal reflex, it is comprehensible that ejaculatory disorders are more frequent in spinal cord injury than in other neurological disorders. Over the past decades, research has focused on PE, and evidence from clinical studies showed a beneficial effect of antidepressants for the treatment of men with PE. Other ejaculatory disorders, especially painful ejaculation, have been less investigated and the proper therapy is still controversial. Aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive description of both currently…
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