Reflexes act as a way to summarize the total reflex activity. They appear in animals and in humans. With pathologies of the nervous system, they can change, linger or completely disappear - it all depends on the nature of the disease. So, the main way of influencing a male erection is to stimulate peripheral nerves, causing a cremaster reflex - one of the five genital reflexes. Not many people know what it is.
Description and description of the problem
A cremaster reflex is a muscle contraction that raises a testicle in response to irritation provoked by stroking the skin on the inside of the thigh. As a result, the testicle, which is located on the same side, rises towards the inguinal canal. This phenomenon is physiological, it is similar to what is observed during sexual arousal. This phenomenon is of great importance for maintaining normal functioning of the body.
The cremaster reflex in women is called differently. The German doctor Geigel described in his writings an ingenious reflex, which is similar to what appears in men, but leads to muscle contraction in the area of ββthe pupartic ligament.
When diagnosing, doctors study the cremaster reflex to detect the presence of neurological disorders that can cause sexual dysfunction.
What affects the severity of the reflex?
The sexual life of each person has several components:
- Sex drive.
- Excitation.
- Erection.
- Orgasm.
The following body systems are responsible for the course of these reactions:
Also responsible for the normal course of processes: the general condition of the body, psyche, structure and activity of the genital organs.
If some part of this chain is damaged, then there is a violation of sexual function, which carries not only physiological, but also psychological discomfort.
Pathology
There are some deviations during this physiological process:
- An increased cremaster reflex, which is often confused with pathologies such as cryptorchidism and testicular ectopy.
- A reduced reflex or its complete absence arising from damage to the nerve fibers of the spinal cord or its membranes.
Cremaster reflex in children
Often in children congenital false cryptorchidism is observed - the ability of the testicle to independently move into the inguinal canal from the scrotum as a result of the increased functionality of a particular muscle.
In boys, the testicles begin to form another period of intrauterine development. At the eighth month of pregnancy of a woman, they begin to move into the scrotum, and after birth should be there. With congenital increased activity of cremaster, the testicles in children can move upward when freezing, frightened, or examined by a doctor.
This phenomenon is not uncommon, in this case, an increased cremaster reflex does not require treatment, since it is not considered a pathology. It is considered to be a normal option for the development of genital organs in children. This phenomenon can be observed both in newborns and in older children. It usually worsens between the ages of two and seven and passes on its own as the child grows older.
The muscle responsible for moving the testicle
The cremaster reflex appears due to the contraction of the cremaster muscle. It is of great importance for the thermoregulation of the testicle, protects it from damage, and also transports ejaculate. The muscle contracts during sexual arousal, pulling the testicles to the inguinal canal.
Sperm is moved through a long duct, which depends on the degree of prolapse of the testicle, that is, the more it is lowered, the harder it will be to transport the ejaculate up. The cremaster reflex, which occurs due to muscle contraction, moves the testicle up, the transport path becomes shorter, it acquires a horizontal position, facilitating the progress of sperm. And with a violation of the reflex, an incomplete rise of the testicle may occur, as a result of which the appendages are not completely released from the ejaculate.
Also, the cremaster muscle, raising and lowering the testicle, helps to maintain a constant temperature in the scrotum.
At times of danger or hypothermia, a cremasteric reflex also develops in men. With sexual arousal, muscle tone increases, it raises the testicle, squeezes the veins that depart from it, and thereby increases the blood supply to the testicles and penis by 50%, contributing to the activation of all the processes that occur in them.
Conclusion
The cremaster reflex is of great importance for the normal functioning of the body. Thanks to this phenomenon, many physiological processes are carried out.
Often men complain to doctors about sexual dysfunction. In this case, the doctor recommends an examination to determine the cause of the appearance of the pathology, and the degree of manifestation of the cremasteric reflex is also studied.
Parents should remember that such a reflex is a normal physiological reaction in children under seven years of age, therefore, you do not need to resort to surgery or another method of therapy. This phenomenon goes away on its own.
Usually, the named reflex is weakened or completely absent when one of the segments of the spinal cord is damaged (L2). Having studied all the necessary reflexes in the patient and having carried out other diagnostic measures, the doctor can make an accurate diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate treatment.