Self-awareness of the male sexual response after spinal cord injury.

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of spinal cord injury on men's sexual motivation, through the sexual desire self-assessment, and the sexual arousal and orgasm physiological responses. This research consisted of a descriptive, nonprobabilistic and comparative study, designed to outline the target population characteristics to compare the studied variables. Forty spinal cord injured male patients and a control group composed of 50 able-bodied male individuals filled in a questionnaire that assessed sexual behaviour, functioning and satisfaction. Comparing the control group with the injured group in the postinjury period, there was no significant difference in the sexual desire; however, in relation to sexual arousal and the orgasm intensity, there was a significant difference. The same results were found when comparing the injured participants' preinjury and postinjury period reports. It was clear that the injury significantly reduced sexual arousal among quadriplegic participants and orgasm intensity among both quadriplegic and paraplegic men. The spinal cord injury had a significant impact on sexual arousal and orgasm physiological response, although the sexual desire perception was not significantly altered, indicating that spinal cord injury affects these men's sexual behaviour in terms of sexual performance and body sensitivity.