ReviewBrain and behavior2019
Neuroanatomy and function of human sexual behavior: A neglected or unknown issue?
Review in Brain and behavior, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 74 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
74 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 191 citations in OpenAlex.
- Sexual function is the most commonly investigated aspect of sexuality in individuals with spinal cord injury or disease - a systematic review.Spinal cord · 2025Pooled it
- The implications of surgery on sexual dysfunction in patients with lumbar disc herniation with cauda equina syndrome: a systematic review.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2025Pooled it
- Hypersexuality in neurological disorders: A systematic review.BMJ mental health · 2024Pooled it
- Tibial nerve stimulation in the management of primary sexual dysfunction in patients with multiple sclerosis: a pilot randomized control trial.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2024Trial
- Melanocortin 4 receptor agonism enhances sexual brain processing in women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2022Trial
- The Sentinel Sleep Theory: Unweaving the biological function of REM sleep.Sleep medicine: X · 2026Article
- Serum thyroid-stimulating hormone and sexual self-schema in domain-specific female sexual function: a cross-sectional study.Sexual medicine · 2026Article
- Relationship Between Sexual Attitude and Sexual Function Among Iranian Women and Men During Pregnancy: A Cross-Sectional Study.Health science reports · 2026Article
- Long-term quality of life in adult craniopharyngioma patients: correlation with pituitary stalk section after endoscopic endonasal surgery.Acta neurochirurgica · 2026Article
- Improving Sexual Dysfunction with Cinnamon Leaf Extract and Nanoemulsion by Using a Rat Model.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Current and future pharmacotherapy for female sexual dysfunction.Nature reviews. Urology · 2026Review
- Evaluation and management of male sexual dysfunction in Parkinson's disease: A clinical road map.Journal of Parkinson's disease · 2026Review
- A Hypersexuality Subset Behavior Induced by Aripiprazole Overdose in an Antipsychotic Naïve Patient: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.Clinics and practice · 2026Article
- Sexual dysfunction in chronic hepatitis B: a comprehensive review of pathophysiology, clinical burden, and integrated management.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Chronic Alcohol Use and Accelerated Brain Aging: Shared Mechanisms with Alzheimer's Disease Pathophysiology.Brain sciences · 2025Review
- A Pragmatic Approach to Sexual Health in Movement Disorders.Movement disorders clinical practice · 2025Review
- Analysis of the Structural Characteristics and Psychometric Properties of the Multiple Sclerosis Intimacy and Sexuality Questionnaire (MSISQ-15): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Sexual Dysfunction and Its Correlates Among Men Dependent on Natural Opium.Indian journal of psychological medicine · 2025Article
- Sexual Dysfunction in Traumatic Brain Injury: A Narrative Review and Call for Multidisciplinary Framework.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Associations between urinary biomarkers of phthalates and phthalate alternatives and female sexual function in a North American cohort.The journal of sexual medicine · 2025Article
14 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionSexual desire, arousal, and orgasm are mediated by complex, yet still not fully understood, interactions of the somatic and autonomic nervous systems operating at the central and peripheral levels. Disruption of endocrine, neural, or vascular response, caused by aging, medical illness, neurological diseases, surgery, or drugs, can lead to sexual dysfunctions, thus significantly affecting patients' quality of life. PURPOSE: This narrative review aims at characterizing the involvement of the central nervous system in human sexual behavior.
methodsA literature search was conducted using PubMed in its entirety up to June 2018, analyzing the studies dealing with the neurobiological and neurophysiological basis of human sexuality.
resultsSexual behavior is regulated by both subcortical structures, such as the hypothalamus, brainstem, and spinal cord, and several cortical brain areas acting as an orchestra to finely adjust this primitive, complex, and versatile behavior. At the central level, dopaminergic and serotonergic systems appear to play a significant role in various factors of sexual response, although adrenergic, cholinergic, and other neuropeptide transmitter systems may contribute as well.
conclusionsProviding healthcare professionals with information concerning sexual behavior may overcome useless and sometimes dangerous barriers and improve patient management, since sexual well-being is considered one of the most important aspects of one's quality of life.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.