Restless genital syndrome before and after clitoridectomy for spontaneous orgasms: a case report

Females despairing of restless genital syndrome (ReGS) may request clitoridectomy for treatment of unwanted genital sensations. Aim. The aim of this study was to report persistence of ReGS despite clitoridectomy.

Following a clitoridectomy for spontaneous orgasms, a 77-year-old woman was referred to our clinic for persistent unwanted genital sensations and feelings of imminent orgasm. An in-depth interview, routine and hormonal investigations, electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain and pelvis were performed. The localizations of genital sensations were investigated by manual examination of the ramus inferior of the pubic bone (RIPB) and by sensory testing of the skin of the genital area with a cotton swab.

The main outcome measures included sensitivity of dorsal nerve of the clitoris in RIPB and MRI-pelvis.

Genital dysesthesias, paresthesias, intolerance (allodynia) for tight clothes, aggravation of symptoms during sitting, restless legs, and overactive bladder were diagnosed. Laboratory assessments, and EEG and MRI of the brain were in agreement with aging, but all results were within the normal range. MRI of the pelvis disclosed varices of the uterus and of the left ovarian vein, and a visible scar in the region of the clitoris. Sensory testing of the genital area showed various points of static mechanical hyperesthesia at the left dermatome of the pudendal nerve. Manual examination of the RIPB also elicited the genital sensations at the left side of the vagina at about the 3 o'clock position.

This patient fulfilled all clinical criteria of ReGS that is believed to be caused by neuropathy of the left pudendal nerve. Clitoridectomy abolished spontaneous orgasms for a great part but not completely, and it did not diminish the typical dysesthesias, paresthesias, and feelings of imminent orgasms that typically belong to ReGS. Clitoridectomy is no optional treatment of ReGS. There is a need for publications of ReGS in general medical journals.