Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Jan-Mar;24(1):100442.
doi: 10.1016/j.ijchp.2024.100442. Epub 2024 Jan 25.

A non-latex condom has no influence on male physiological sexual arousal

Alejandro Saavedra-Roa  1 , Pablo Vallejo-Medina  1   2
Affiliations

A non-latex condom has no influence on male physiological sexual arousal

Alejandro Saavedra-Roa et al. Int J Clin Health Psychol. 2024 Jan-Mar.

Abstract

Background/objective: Men do not use external condoms for several reasons, which can result in public health problems. One of these is related to Condom-Associated Erectile Problems. This study aimed to examine the sexual arousal response of heterosexual men when using an external condom made of synthetic resin type AT-10.

Method: A total of 82 Colombian young men (Mage = 23.17 years, SD = 3.04, age range = 18-30) participated in this experimental study. Two random groups (experimental and control; n = 41 each) were compared. The experimental group used condoms, whereas the control group did not. Fit and feel condom perceptions, initial erectile scores, age, and substance use were controlled for. Erection was measured while viewing a sexual video by using penile plethysmography and subjective arousal.

Results: The results, obtained from comparing the experimental group (using pre-erection condoms) with the control group (not using condoms), revealed no significant difference in both subjective and physiological sexual arousal. This suggests that pre-erection condoms do not have an effect on the erectile response.

Discussion: More research is needed in this area to provide treatment and clinical interventions or sexual and reproductive education to mitigate the occurrence of sexual dysfunction, unplanned pregnancies, or sexually transmitted infections. Also, research addresses public health issues related to the prevention and/or intervention of sexual risk behaviors and sexual dysfunctions, highlighting their significance in sexual education and clinical practice.

Keywords: Condom-associated erectile problems; Male sexual arousal; Phallometry; Plethysmography; Pre-erection condom.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig A1
Fig. A.1
Box and Density Depictions Plots of Erection Properties Differences Between Groups Note. plots of statistical differences between groups (i.e., control and experimental) of erection properties evaluated are shown: A. Average percentage of circumference increase. B. Maximum percentage of circumference increase. C. Erection latency. D. Erection duration.
Fig B1
Fig. B.1
Box and Density Depictions Plots of Subjective Sexual Arousal Differences Between Groups Note. Box and density plots of statistical differences between groups (i.e., control and experimental) of subjective sexual arousal are shown.
Fig C1
Fig. C.1
Graphical Depictions of Relations Between Erectile Functioning and Erection Properties Note. Nonsignificant relationships by group between sexual functioning self-report (i.e., IIEF-5) and erection properties assessed are shown: A. Average percentage of circumference increase. B. Maximum percentage of circumference increase. C. Erection latency. D. Erection duration.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Adam B.D., Husbands W., Murray J., Maxwell J. AIDS optimism, condom fatigue, or self-esteem? Explaining unsafe sex among gay and bisexual men. Journal of Sex Research. 2005;42:238–248. doi: 10.1080/00224490509552278. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Anstee S., Shepherd J., Graham C.A., Stone N., Brown K., Newby K., et al. Evidence for behavioural interventions addressing condom use fit and feel issues to improve condom use: A systematic review. Sexual Health. 2019;16:539–547. doi: 10.1071/SH19001. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Attali, D. (2016). GgExtra: Add marginal histograms to ‘ggplot2’, and more ‘ggplot2’ Enhancements. R package version 0.8 2018. https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/ggExtra/ggExtra.pdf.
    1. Beksinska M., Wong R., Smit J. Male and feexternal condoms: Their key role in pregnancy and STI/HIV prevention. Best Practice & Research. Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology. 2020;66:55–67. doi: 10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2019.12.001. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bjekić M., Sipetić-Grujičić S., Vlajinac H., Nikolić A. Reasons for not using condoms among heterosexual men in Belgrade, Serbia. Acta Dermatovenerologica Croatica: ADC. 2018;26:58–60. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29782302/ - PubMed