Lecture Notes

The clitoris is considered the center of sexual arousal. It contains a high concentration of sensory nerve endings. It is very sensitive to stimulation, especially at the tip of its shaft, which is known as the glans clitoris. A fold of skin, known as the clitoral hood, covers the glans when the clitoris is not engorged. Although the glans clitoris is structurally homologous with the glans penis, its sole function is sexual arousal, whereas the glans penis serves the additional function of urine excretion and semen ejaculation. The shaft, or prepuce, of the clitoris is both an external and an internal structure. The external portion is about one inch long and a quarter inch wide. Internally the shaft is divided into two branches called the crura. The crura are the tips of erectile tissue that attach to the pelvic bone and two corpora cavernosa. The corpora cavernosa are hollow chambers that fill with blood and swell during arousal. The hidden erectile tissue of the clitoris plus the surrounding muscle tissue all contribute to the muscle spasm associated with orgasm.