The impact of premature ejaculation on the subjective perception of orgasmic intensity: validation and standardisation of the ‘Orgasmometer’

Abstract

SUMMARYTo the best of our knowledge, no psychometric tools have been specifically developed to measure if premature ejaculation (PE) is related to low sexual pleasure in terms of perception of orgasmic intensity. Hence, the aim of this study was to evaluate if men with PE suffer from a low perception of orgasmic intensity using a new tool, the 'Orgasmometer', to quantitatively measure the intensity of orgasmic pleasure. Among 329 subjects attending our andrological unit for suspected PE, 257 men fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Of these, 156 (60.7%; 156/257) were affected by PE (PE group) and 101 (39.3%; 101/257) did not have any sexual dysfunction (Control group). Men were requested to fill out the Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT) and the Orgasmometer, a new visual tool recording orgasm intensity on a Likert scale. Interestingly, MANCOVA analysis revealed a statistically significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.044) in the subjective perception of orgasm intensity with the PE group scoring lower on the Orgasmometer (mean 5.8; 95% CI 5.191-6.409) than the Control group (mean 7.95; 95% CI 7.033-8.87). In addition, multiple linear regression revealed an inverse correlation between the PEDT and the Orgasmometer scores (p < 0.0001). Hence, higher PEDT scores were associated with a lower subjective perception of orgasmic intensity. The Orgasmometer was well understood, had good test-retest reliability and a high AUC in differentiating between men with high and low orgasmic pleasure intensity. The ROC curve analysis showed that a cut-off ≤6 had 87.7% sensitivity (95% CI 79.6-92.6), 95% specificity (95% CI 88.7-98.4), 95.3% positive predictive value (PPV) and 86.4% negative predictive value (NPV). Men affected by premature ejaculation perceived significantly lower orgasmic intensity than sexually healthy men. The Orgasmometer is an easy-to-perform, user-friendly tool for measuring orgasmic intensity.

The Masturbation Erection Index (MEI): validation of a new psychometric tool, derived from the six‐item version of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF‐6) and from the Erection Hardness Score (EHS), for measuring erectile function during masturbation

“…This index was defined as the number of individuals having a score beyond the limit of agreement (LOA), defined by the lines +1.96 sd and −1.96 sd . An index within the 5% suggests agreement between two methods . In our analysis, the number of individuals having a score beyond the LOA, defined by the lines ±1.96 sd , was equal to 6 providing a Bland–Altman index of 6%, confirming an agreement between the two methods.…”

Correlations and stratification analysis between premature ejaculation and psychological disorders

“…Premature ejaculation is a common male sexual dysfunction which is poorly understood and can lead to a low perception of orgasmic intensity and female sexual dysfunction (FSD) (Limoncin et al, ; Maseroli et al, ). Nowadays, a problem exists in assessing the prevalence of PE is the lack of a validated definition of the PE (Waldinger, ).…”

“…It has been shown in previous studies that sexual dysfunction relates to a wide series of psychological problems, such as general anxiety and depression (Althof, ; Gao et al, , ; Hale & Strassberg, ; Rowland, ; Rowland & Cooper, ; Zhang et al, ). An observational study (Limoncin et al, ) (using the orgasmometer) conducted in Rome showed that men affected by premature ejaculation perceived significantly lower orgasmic intensity than sexually healthy men. Another study (Rowland, Patrick, & Gagnon, ) (with the usage of validated measurement) showed that PE patients reported lower levels of sex function and harder to be fulfilled by sex and higher incidences of psychological and psychiatric distress comparing with men without PE.…”

Lifestyles and sexuality in men and women: the gender perspective in sexual medicine

“…Being the ejaculatory mechanism itself unrelated to the lifestyle, the unique logical explanation of this effect could be the very frequent comorbidity between ejaculatory and ED [43][44][45], where one exacerbates the other. Moreover, physical exercises improve self-esteem and body image, which are negatively influenced in subjects with PE [46].…”