Cavalier pains
Blue balls or groom pain , even Blue testicles ( English blue balls ) or popularly known as "testicular varicose" range from unpleasant feelings of tension to pain in the testicle area after sexual arousal without following ejaculation occur and may persist even after ejaculation if the erection has been sustained for a particularly long time, or multiple ejaculations occur in a short period of time.
process
During sexual arousal in the man, blood flows through the dilated arteries to the genitals, first to the penis , then to the testicles, while the veins that draw blood from the genitals narrow in the state of sexual arousal (see vasoconstriction ). This uneven blood flow increases the concentration of blood in the genitals and aids in erection of the penis and swelling of the testicles. The accumulated blood gives the skin of the testicles a bluish tinge, which is why this condition is also called blue balls in English . The blood vessels in the genital area dilate enormously during vasocongestion , and the testicles can grow 25-50% larger in this condition. The real reason for the pain in the spermatic duct and epididymis is spasmodic smooth muscle spasms .
When the man reaches orgasm and ejaculates, the arteries and veins return to their original size, the amount of blood in the genitals decreases, and the penis and testicles also quickly shrink. If the man does not ejaculate, he may feel a persistent feeling of pain, pressure, or discomfort in the testicles from the vasoconstriction that is still present , radiating to the groin.
Occurrences and concomitants
The phenomenon occurs mainly in people who have been sexually inactive for a long time. (In women, a similar pain in the pubic area can occur if no orgasm is achieved after strong arousal, but there is no separate name for this.) Depending on the predisposition, the pain can be very intense and subjectively very disturbing, especially since it is also in sexually inexperienced people People and not just in direct erotic interactions. They can then be mistaken for tumor pain, for example.
Basically, the symptoms are not harmful, but if pain persists, a doctor should be consulted in order to rule out any blood flow disorders or other serious illnesses. Cavalier pain is also a side effect of permanent erection ( priapism ), which is one of the causes of erectile dysfunction . Due to the natural and unavoidable morning erection , psychosomatic problems can arise. In addition to the physical stress in the form of persistent high blood pressure in the testicles, psychologically rooted stress can be added, which increases the risk of later erectile dysfunction.
The widespread belief that when aroused without orgasm, larger amounts of semen are produced and then stored in the testicles, is wrong. The phenomenon of the blue balls only became the target of scientific research in 2000. Previously, the term was partly used synonymously for epididymitis (inflammation of the epididymis), which apart from the symptoms has little in common with the described blood flow disorder ("epididymitis erotica / sympathica"). Even among medical specialists there is still uncertainty about this. Incorrect diagnoses and - much more seriously - incorrect drug treatments cannot be ruled out.
term
The term cavalier pain can come from the fact that a cavalier delayed his orgasm during sexual intercourse until his / her partner is sexually satisfied. Reasons for delaying are, for example, the longer arousal phase of women or the desire for multiple orgasms that both partners can experience. The term grooms ache may have come about for the same reasons, but presumably mainly refers to the traditional long period of abstinence with simultaneous sexual arousal during the engagement period, when these symptoms were particularly common. Cavalier pain is one of the honeymoon symptoms described as joking .
treatment
As a rule, the pain symptoms regress within 30 minutes to 3 hours after the ejaculation has taken place. This can be achieved by moderate cooling of the testicle e.g. B. be supported by a cold and wet towel.
See also
literature
- J. Chalett, L. Nerenberg: "Blue Balls": A Diagnostic Consideration in Testiculoscrotal Pain in Young Adults: A Case Report and Discussion. In: Pediatrics. Volume 106, October 2000, pp. 843-844 ( online text , post-publication peer reviews ).
- Stephan Dressler, Christoph Zink: Pschyrembel Dictionary Sexuality. Gruyter, Berlin et al. 2003, ISBN 3-11-016965-7 , p. 453.
