Korean J Urol.  2006 Jul;47(7):779-785. 10.4111/kju.2006.47.7.779.

Location of Brain Electrical Source Activation according to Visually Stimulated Sexual Arousal: A Cross Spectral Analysis using Low Resolution Brain Electromagnetic Tomography (LORETA)

• Kam SC
• Choi SM
• Jeh SU
• Hwa JS
• Jung KH
• Jeong SW
• Kwon OY
• Hyun JS

• KMID: 2294322
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4111/kju.2006.47.7.779

Abstract

PURPOSE: Low resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (LORETA) is a kind of functional imaging technique and it is also an up-to-date technique for conducting electroencephalography (EEG) analysis. We tried to investigate the locations on the cerebral cortex that are activated by visually stimulated sexual arousal.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Thirty-three male volunteers (age range: 24.7+/-1.7 years) among all the right-handed medical students at our university were enrolled in this study. The EEGs included the segments recorded during resting, watching a music-video, intermission and watching a porno-video. The LORETA images of the cross-spectral analysis were obtained with using segments of LORETA-KEY (KEY Institute for Brain-Mind Research, Switzerland) software.
RESULTS
In the statistical nonparametric maps (SnPM) of each spectrum and the delta, theta and alpha waves did not show the increased current density. The beta 1, 2 and 3 activity showed the point of maximal current densities in the anterior parahippocampal gyrus of the left limbic lobe and the superior temporal gyrus of both temporal lobes, the superior temporal gyrus of the right temporal lobe, the precuneus of the right parietal lobe, the medial frontal gyrus of the left frontal lobe, the middle occipital gyrus of the right occipital lobe, the superior temporal gyrus of both temporal lobes and the superior frontal gyrus of the right frontal lobe.
CONCLUSIONS
The sexual arousal by visual stimulation may activate the anterior parahippocampal gyrus of the left limbic lobe, the superior temporal gyrus of both temporal lobes, the precuneus of the right parietal lobe, the medial frontal gyrus of the left frontal gyrus, and the middle occipital gyrus of the right occipital lobe.

Keyword

Tomography; Arousal; Visual stimulation

MeSH Terms

Arousal*
Brain*
Cerebral Cortex
Electroencephalography
Frontal Lobe
Humans
Magnets*
Male
Occipital Lobe
Parahippocampal Gyrus
Parietal Lobe
Photic Stimulation
Students, Medical
Temporal Lobe
Volunteers

Figure

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  Fig. 1 The anatomical areas of current density increment of the beta 1 (13-18Hz) band induced by visual-sexual arousal. The current density is increased in the parahippocampal gyrus, the superior temporal gyrus of the left hemisphere and the superior temporal gyrus of the right hemisphere.

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  Fig. 2 The anatomical areas of current density increment of the beta 2 (19-21Hz) band induced by visual-sexual arousal. The current density is increased in the superior temporal gyrus of the right hemisphere.

• 

  Fig. 3 The anatomical areas of current density increment of the beta 3 (22-30Hz) band induced by visual-sexual arousal. The current density is increased in the superior temporal gyrus, the precuneus and the middle occipital gyrus of the right hemisphere, and the medial frontal gyrus of the left hemisphere.

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