The Sexual Life of Woman in its Physiological, Pathological and Hygienic Aspects
9781465648600
400 pages
Library of Alexandria
Overview
By the sexual life of woman we understand the reciprocal action between the physiological functions and pathological states of the female genital organs on the one hand and the entire female organism in its physical and mental relations on the other; and the object of this book is to give a complete account of the influence exercised by the reproductive organs, during the time of their development, their maturity, and their involution, on the life history of woman. From the earliest days of the medical art this sexual life of woman has aroused in the leaders of medical thought the highest interest, and for this reason great attention has been directed, not only to the anatomy of the genital organs and to the diseases of the reproductive system, but also to the individual manifestations of sexual activity and to the influence exercised by these on the female organism as a whole. Several works by Hippocrates are extant on this subject, among which may be mentioned: περι Γυναικειης Φυσεος, a treatise on the physiology and pathology of woman; περι Αφορων, which discusses sterility in women; περι παρθενιων, a treatise on the pathological states of virgins. These writings of Hippocrates contain some very remarkable observations on the influence exercised by disorders of the reproductive organs on the general health of women. Aristotle wrote at some length on the functions of the female genital organs. In the writings of Aretæus andGalen on the diseases of women we find striking observations, as for instance, in Galen’s De Locis Affectis, which contains a “Statement of the Similarity and Dissimilarity of Man and Woman.” Another notable work is that of Albertus Magnus, entitled De Secretis Mulierum. The numerous works on the diseases of women published in the sixteenth century consisted for the most part of a repetition of the observations of ancient writers. The gynecological treatises of the eighteenth century, however, bore witness to an increased knowledge of the anatomy of the female reproductive organs, and were illumined byHaller’s researches on the functions of these organs.
