Female sexual arousal disorder subtypes : differentiation via laboratory-induced hyperventilation

The effects of heightened sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity via laboratory-induced hyperventilation (LIH) on subjective and physiological sexual arousal were examined in a group of women with undifferentiated Female Sexual Arousal Disorder (FSAD), as well as across subtypes of FSAD, in comparison to a control group of women without sexual difficulties. Participants were asked to take part in LIH immediately prior to viewing one of two videos containing erotic stimuli. Physiological arousal was measured via the vaginal photoplethysmograph and subjective arousal was measured via self-report questionnaires. LIH differentiated women with FSAD from controls, with LIH increasing physiological arousal in the control group but having no significant effect in the undifferentiated FSAD group. However, when subtypes of FSAD were examined, LIH differentiated women with genital and subjective subtypes of FSAD from women with combined FSAD and women without sexual difficulties. Results have implications for the conceptualization, diagnosis, and treatment of FSAD.Arts, Faculty ofPsychology, Department ofGraduat