B
B
f their female subjects could only have clitoral orgasms, they found that both c
litoral and vaginal orgasms had the same stages of physical response. On this ba
sis, they argued that clitoral stimulation is the source of both kinds of orgasm
s,[59][60] reasoning that the clitoris is stimulated during penetration by frict
ion against its hood; their notion that this provides the clitoris with sufficie
nt sexual stimulation has been criticized by researchers such as Elisabeth Lloyd
.[33]
Australian urologist Helen O'Connell's 2005 research additionally indicates a co
nnection between orgasms experienced vaginally and the clitoris, suggesting that
clitoral tissue extends into the anterior wall of the vagina and that therefore
clitoral and vaginal orgasms are of the same origin.[6] Some studies, using ult
rasound, have found physiological evidence of the G-spot in women who report hav
ing orgasms during vaginal intercourse,[41][63] but O'Connell suggests that the
clitoris's interconnected relationship with the vagina is the physiological expl
anation for the conjectured G-spot. Having used MRI technology which enabled her
to note a direct relationship between the legs or roots of the clitoris and the
erectile tissue of the "clitoral bulbs" and corpora, and the distal urethra and
vagina, she stated that the vaginal wall is the clitoris; that lifting the skin
off the vagina on the side walls reveals the bulbs of the clitoris triangular, cres
cental masses of erectile tissue.[6] O'Connell et al., who performed dissections
on the female genitals of cadavers and used photography to map the structure of
nerves in the clitoris, were already aware that the clitoris is more than just
its glans and asserted in 1998 that there is more erectile tissue associated wit
h the clitoris than is generally described in anatomical textbooks.[42][59] They
concluded that some females have more extensive clitoral tissues and nerves tha
n others, especially having observed this in young cadavers as compared to elder
ly ones,[42][59] and therefore whereas the majority of females can only achieve
orgasm by direct stimulation of the external parts of the clitoris, the stimulat
ion of the more generalized tissues of the clitoris via intercourse may be suffi
cient for others.[6]
French researchers Odile Buisson and Pierre Folds reported similar findings to tha
t of O'Connell's. In 2008, they published the first complete 3D sonography of th
e stimulated clitoris, and republished it in 2009 with new research, demonstrati
ng the ways in which erectile tissue of the clitoris engorges and surrounds the
vagina, arguing that women may be able to achieve vaginal orgasm via stimulation
of the G-spot because the highly innervated clitoris is pulled closely to the a
nterior wall of the vagina when the woman is sexually aroused and during vaginal
penetration. They assert that since the front wall of the vagina is inextricabl
y linked with the internal parts of the clitoris, stimulating the vagina without
activating the clitoris may be next to impossible.[39][41][64][65] In their 200
9 published study, the "coronal planes during perineal contraction and finger pe
netration demonstrated a close relationship between the root of the clitoris and
the anterior vaginal wall". Buisson and Folds suggested "that the special sensiti
vity of the lower anterior vaginal wall could be explained by pressure and movem
ent of clitoris's root during a vaginal penetration and subsequent perineal cont
raction".[41][65]
Supporting a distinct G-spot is a study by Rutgers University, published 2011, w
hich was the first to map the female genitals onto the sensory portion of the br
ain;[16] brain scans showed that the brain registered distinct feelings between
stimulating the clitoris, the cervix and the vaginal wall
where the G-spot is repo
rted to be when several women stimulated themselves in a functional magnetic reson
ance (fMRI) machine.[16][39] "I think that the bulk of the evidence shows that t
he G-spot is not a particular thing," stated Barry Komisaruk, head of the resear
ch findings. "It's not like saying, 'What is the thyroid gland?' The G-spot is m
ore of a thing like New York City is a thing. It's a region, it's a convergence
of many different structures."[43] Commenting on Komisaruk's research and other
findings, Emmanuele Jannini, a professor of endocrinology at the University of A
For women, other than nerve endings found within the anus and rectum, anal pleas
ure may be achieved through indirect stimulation of the clitoral "legs"
extensions
of the clitoris that flank the urethra, urethral sponge, and vagina, and extend
back toward the pubis. Indirect stimulation of the clitoris through anal penetr
ation may be caused by the shared sensory nerves; especially the pudendal nerve,
which gives off the inferior anal nerves and divides into two terminal branches
: the perineal nerve and the dorsal nerve of the clitoris.[15] The G-spot area,
considered to be interconnected with the clitoris,[6][15][43] may also be access
ible through anal penetration; besides the shared anatomy of the aforementioned
sensory nerves, orgasm by stimulation of the clitoris or G-spot area through ana
l penetration is made possible because of the close proximity between the vagina
l cavity and the rectal cavity, allowing for general indirect stimulation.[71][7
2] Achieving orgasm solely by anal stimulation is rare among women.[73][74] Dire
ct stimulation of the clitoris, G-spot area, or both, during anal sex can help s
ome women enjoy the activity and reach orgasm from it.[36][72]
The aforementioned orgasms are sometimes referred to as anal orgasms,[74][75] bu
t sexologists and sex educators generally believe that orgasms derived from anal
penetration are the result of the anus's proximity to the clitoris or G-spot in
women, and the prostate in men, rather than orgasms originating from the anus i
tself.[15][72][74] Author Jack Morin, however, has postulated that "anal orgasm"
has nothing to do with the prostate orgasm, although the two are often confused
.[76]
On rare occasions, stimulation of the breast area during sexual intercourse or f
oreplay, or solely having the breasts fondled, creates mild to intense orgasms,
sometimes referred to as a breast orgasm or nipple orgasm, in some women.[16] Ac
cording to one study, by Herbert Otto, which questioned 213 women, 29% of them h
ad experienced an orgasm of this kind at one time or another.[77] Research sugge
sts that the sensations are genital orgasms caused by nipple stimulation, and ma
y also be directly linked to "the genital area of the brain".[16][78] An orgasm
is believed to occur in part because of the hormone oxytocin, which is produced
in the body during sexual excitement and arousal. It has also been shown that ox
ytocin is produced when a man or woman's nipples are stimulated and become erect
.[79]
A study published in the July 2011 The Journal of Sexual Medicine was the first
to map the female genitals onto the sensory portion of the brain, and concluded
that sensation from the nipples travels to the same part of the brain as sensati
ons from the vagina, clitoris and cervix. "Four major nerves bring signals from
women's genitals to their brains," said researcher Barry Komisaruk of Rutgers Un
iversity. "The pudendal nerve connects the clitoris, the pelvic nerve carries si
gnals from the vagina, the hypogastric nerve connects with the cervix and uterus
, and the vagus nerve travels from the cervix and uterus without passing through
the spinal cord (making it possible for some women to achieve orgasm even thoug
h they have had complete spinal cord injuries)." Komisaruk cited one reason for
this possibility to be oxytocin, which is also released during labor and trigger
s uterus contractions. Nipple stimulation triggers uterine contractions, which t
hen produce a sensation in the genital area of the brain. Komisaruk also relayed
, however, that preliminary data suggests that nipple nerves may directly link u
p with the relevant parts of the brain without uterine mediation, acknowledging
the men in his study who showed the same pattern of nipple stimulation activatin
g genital brain regions