Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder: A Study on an Italian Group of Female University Students

Abstract

There are very few studies in literature about Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder (PGAD) prevalence to date, and no one has ever been done in Italy. This study replicated the earlier Canadian research in order to investigate the prevalence of PGAD diagnostic criteria in an Italian group of 679 female university students and to compare the results with those obtained in the Canadian group. In addition, the research aimed at verifying if the type or number of PGAD criteria met and the intensity of symptoms are associated with more negative emotions, and if they can be related to age and sexual orientation. The results confirm that some women can experience spontaneous genital sensations that can vary in intensity and duration, and can be associated with a wide range of emotions. However, the results seem to suggest the importance of other factors in the evaluation of the symptoms, rather than factors related to their nature and intensity or age and sexual orientation. Moreover, 2 participants (0.29%) met all five criteria and reported high distress, confirming that there is a potential clinical condition called PGAD, in which the hypertrophic, intense and intrusive spontaneous genital arousal might determine the presence of extremely negative emotions.

Keywords:

• Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder
• female sexual function
• spontaneous genital arousal
• prevalence of PGAD criteria
• Italian group of female university students

Notes

1 Caroline F. Pukall, Ph.D., Psych. Professor & Director, Sex Therapy Service. Department of Psychology, Queen’s University, Kingston (Ontario), Canada.

2 Robyn Jackowich, Ph.D. Student (Clinical Psychology). M.Sc. (Clinical Psychology). B.A. (Psychology). Queen’s University, Kingston (Ontario), Canada.