Men with premature ejaculation (PE) appear to have a different brain structure compared to men without the condition.
In a recent Journal of Sexual Medicine study, scientists reported that men with lifelong PE had a higher mean volume of the caudate nucleus (6.8 cm3) compared to men without PE (6.1 cm3). Higher volume was associated with more severe PE symptoms.
PE – ejaculation before a man wishes it to happen – is a common problem. Lifelong PE generally occurs when a man climaxes within a minute of vaginal penetration, causes significant distress, and the situation has been present since his first intercourse. Men with PE often feel ashamed and worry about their partner’s reaction.
In the present study, researchers sought to determine whether PE could be linked to changes in brain structure.
Fifty-four men with lifelong PE participated in the study. An additional 42 men without PE served as a control group. All of the men were right-handed, and their average age was 34 years. All were married.
Men with PE completed the Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT). The researchers also determined each man’s average intravaginal ejaculation latency time (IELT) based on 4 weeks of reports.
Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the researchers assessed the volume of various brain structures, including white matter, gray matter, the cerebellum, the amygdala, the caudate nucleus, and the hippocampus, among others.
They noted that mean caudate nucleus volume was larger in men with PE. In addition, they found a “significant positive correlation” between caudate nucleus volume and PEDT score, suggesting a link between higher volume and poorer ejaculatory control. A negative correlation was found with caudate nucleus volume and IELT.
“Whether the subcortical changes are the cause or consequence of lifelong PE remains unclear,” the authors wrote, adding that the small sample size was another limitation of the study.
“More extensive and possibly longitudinal studies are needed to improve our understanding of the mechanisms of the neurobiology underlying PE,” they concluded.
Resources
Healthline.com
“Caudate nucleus”
(April 14, 2015)
https://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/caudate-nucleus#1
The Journal of Sexual Medicine
Atalay, Hasan Anil, MD, et al.
“Are There Differences in Brain Morphology in Patients with Lifelong Premature Ejaculation?”
(Full-text. Published online: May 15, 2019)
https://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(19)31125-7/fulltext