Even though addictions to sex, hypersexuality and sexual compulsivity have been the source of debate over official diagnoses, addiction experts say the numbers of people seeking treatment for the conditions continues to grow, as noted in an April 2011 article on the Online Journal.

Sexual therapists who began treating people with sexual addictions in the late 1990s banded together to share information and expertise, being only a few in the area of specialty. Today, centers are being established worldwide as are group-based therapy programs and new Internet resources for recovering from sexual addiction.

Alexandra Katehakis, founder of the Center for Healthy Sex, believes celebrity announcements of sexual addictions and sexually compulsive behaviors have helped ignite the progress toward recognition of the problem. Without celebrities addressing their sexual addictions, Katehakis doesn’t believe as many treatment centers would be available.

Because federal regulations to determine exactly how many people are receiving professional assistance for sexual addictions are not yet in place, it is unclear how widespread the problem may be. Further complicating the issue is the reality that while people with sexual addictions may neglect their families and jobs, see financial ruin and the destruction of their families, scientific research to demonstrate withdrawal symptoms has not yet been officially documented.

Experts expect scientific studies addressing sexual addiction withdrawal symptoms and tolerance issues to emerge soon, with potential to place the field of sexual addiction into a similar field as alcohol or drug addiction.

Also referred to as sex addiction, hyper-sexual disorders can afflict both men and women and is characterized by compulsive sexual behavior. These individuals also generally engage in behaviors such as cybersex, pornography and excessive masturbation.

The Society for Advancement of Sexual Health suggests that 3-5 percent of the population may be affected with this disorder. Research also indicates that compulsive sexual disorder tends to be associated with conditions such as bipolar disorder and substance abuse.

The mPFC has long been identified as the area of the brain that plays an important role in inhibiting destructive or inappropriate behaviors. When the rats were studied, male rats with damage to the mPFC exhibited normal sexual behavior at first.

Researchers then taught both “damaged” and normal rats a negative association with sex by injecting all rats with medicine after mating that induced nausea. In this way, the rats quickly learned to associate mating with unpleasant consequences.

After four lessons were given, 78 percent of the non-damaged rats stopped the mating behaviors, some even avoiding the female rats altogether. The rats with damage to the mPFC continued to engage in sexual behavior. This study suggests that the same thing could happen in humans with similar damage.

For this study, Dr. Lique Coolen and colleagues wanted to see whether the mPFC is involved in inhibition of sexual behavior. Using rats, the researchers found that lesions on the mPFC result in compulsive sexual behavior, but did not alter sexual performance of the learning associated with reward in the brain.

This suggests that the mPFC regulates impulsive sexual behavior once the behavior is associated with aversive outcomes. The rats with lesions were probably capable of associating the behaviors with aversive outcomes but couldn’t suppress seeking a sexual reward, even with negative consequences. This parallels compulsive sexual behavior in humans, as people are driven to compulsive sexual behavior regardless of negative outcomes.

The results may help researchers better understand a common pathology that underlies impulse control disorders.

Source: Science Daily, Frontal Cortex Dysfunction May Contribute to Compulsive Sexual Behavior, Study Suggests, June 10, 2010.