X's & O's Blog

Not Just a Man’s World Sexual Dysfunction Among Women

Typically, sexual dysfunction—defined as a problem occurring during any phase of the sexual response cycle that prevents an individual or couple from experiencing satisfacti… Read Article

Kegel Exercices for Men?

Those men who have heard of Kegel exercises probably heard about them from their wives as they rehabilitated their bladders and vaginas after childbirth. But both men and women ha… Read Article

Causes and Treatment of Painful Intercourse (Dyspareunia)

Painful intercourse is called dyspareunia. The word is derived from the Greek word dyspareunos, which means “badly mated!”  Over my 35 years of practice, when me… Read Article

I Wish I Had Done This (Penile Implant Surgery) Years Ago

I can’t tell you the number of times a patient said to me, after recuperating from hysterectomy for severe menstrual cramps or severe pain with intercourse, once again feeli… Read Article

Sexual Wellbeing After Cancer

Sexual wellbeing is a central component of quality of life. Cancer can result in significant disruption of sexuality. This disruption is one of the most negative influences on soc… Read Article

Addyi, Female Viagra?

Addyi, Female Viagra? Recent FDA approval of a pill to treat low sexual desire in women has caused a strong reaction.   More so because of the media label of the pill a… Read Article

Female 'Viagra', Addyi, approved with strong warning from the FDA

This is big news, but is this really like Viagra, and is it safe? No, it is not like Viagra, which works well by increasing blood flow to the penis. The mechanism of action for Ad… Read Article

Masturbation, facts, not myths

Masturbation is touching one’s body, including the sexual organs, to experience pleasure. For many, masturbation is a taboo subject. There are many harmful myths, social and… Read Article

Why do women stop having sex?

The two main reasons for not having intercourse in women over 50 are due to partner related factors or lack of partner. Let´s first talk about partner related factors. 52% … Read Article

Testosterone for women

Testosterone and Women... There has been a lot of media attention to testosterone therapy for women. You might ask, but isn’t testosterone the male hormone? Yes, it is, but … Read Article

But, Doc, what happened to my manhood? (after prostatectomy for cancer)

Manhood, what it means to be a man, is the ability to obtain and maintain erections sufficient for penetration. Having sex is integral to being a man. Sexual performance is a symb… Read Article

Is Hormone Therapy Good or Bad?

When my 55 year old sister told me vaginal estrogen cream had really helped her with vaginal dryness and painful intercourse, I was surprised that estrogen was something new to he… Read Article

Kegel Exercises

Many times over the years, I explained Kegel exercises to patients. Patients who were postpartum and losing urine with coughing, laughing, sneezing, or exercising. Patients w… Read Article

About Lower Testosterone in Men

Occasionally a patient would tell me that her husband was having trouble with erections, but that he would not go to the doctor (sound familiar, fellows?).  He wanted her to … Read Article

Benefits of Exercise

I just reviewed two articles on the benefits of exercise. The first was published in JAMA Oncol, July 16,2015 and studied the relationship of increased body fat and increased… Read Article

Sexual intimacy after Prostate Cancer

Treatment of prostate cancer, the most common type of cancer in men, usually has a list of negative side effects. Besides erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence, many men a… Read Article

Talking to your doctor about sex

From studies published by the New Journal of Medicine, the British Medical Journal, and AARP regarding sexual activity among those over 50, it is clear that the majority of senior… Read Article

My Story About Impotence

OK, readers, there are many causes of erectile dysfunction (ED) or impotence, the inability to achieve or maintain an erection satisfactory for penetration. Erections are a critic… Read Article

Safe sex

During my practice years and while medical director at Planned Parenthood I spoke frequently with young patients about safe sex. Only rarely was there such a conversation with my … Read Article