¹School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

Correspondence: Dr C Jiao, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sydney, C42, Lidcombe, Sydney NSW 2141, Australia. E-mail: jiaochuanshu@hotmail.com

Received 21 June 2005; Revised 24 August 2005; Accepted 24 August 2005; Published online 27 October 2005.

Abstract

Although it is known that alterations in grip strength occur under a number of conditions, little is known about relationships between grip strength and sexual arousal. This relationship was investigated in 30 healthy heterosexual males, who viewed both erotic and nonerotic videos. A questionnaire was used to assess the extent of sexual arousal. The grip strengths of both hands were measured with a five-position (P1–P5) dynamometer, before and after watching the videos. After watching the erotic video, there was a statistically significant reduction in grip strength for the P2 position, with nonsignificant overall reductions in grip strength for all other positions tested. No such effect was observed in control tests. The results indicate that during sexual arousal, the neural system is likely to reduce the output to muscles not directly related to sexual function, presumably to enhance the physiological responses of sexual arousal.