Epididymal hypertension

{{short description|Condition that arises during male sexual arousal when seminal fluid is not ejaculated}}

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{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}

{{Redirect|Blue balls|other uses|Blue Ball (disambiguation){{!}}Blue Ball}}

{{Infobox medical condition (new)

| name = Epididymal hypertension

| synonyms = Sexual arousal orchialgia{{cite book |last1=Wiener |first1=SL |editor1-last=Walker |editor1-first=HK |editor2-last=Hall |editor2-first=WD |editor3-last=Hurst |editor3-first=JW |chapter=Testicular Pain |title=Clinical Methods: The History, Physical, and Laboratory Examinations |edition=3rd |location=Boston |publisher=Butterworths |year=1990 |pmid=21250139}}

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| caption = The phenomenon manifests itself in the form of mild discomfort around the genitals or in the lower abdomen.

| field = Urology

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Epididymal hypertension (EH), informally referred to as blue balls for males or blue vulva for females, is a harmless but uncomfortable sensation in the genital regions during a prolonged state of sexual arousal.{{cite book |last = Fergusson |first = Rosalind |author2 = Eric Partridge |author3 = Paul Beale |title = Shorter Slang Dictionary |page = 21 |publisher = Routledge |date = December 1993 |isbn = 978-0-415-08866-4}}{{Cite web |date=2023-01-18 |title=Is Blue Balls Real? |url=https://health.clevelandclinic.org/blue-balls/ |access-date=2023-11-28 |website=Cleveland Clinic |language=en-US}} It usually resolves within hours unless relieved through an orgasm.{{Cite web |last=Bhattacharya |first=Mallika |title=What Is Blue Vulva Syndrome? |url=https://www.webmd.com/sex/what-is-blue-vulva-syndrome |access-date=2023-11-28 |website=WebMD |language=en}}

In females, the discomfort occurs in the erectile tissue and clitoris of the vulva. In males, the phenomenon results in an uncomfortable testicular sensation.{{Cite journal|last1=Byrne|first1=Lauren N.|last2=Meacham|first2=Randall B.|date=2006|title=Management of Post-Ejaculatory Perineal Pain|journal=Journal of Andrology|language=en|volume=27|issue=6|pages=710–711|doi=10.2164/jandrol.106.001370|issn=1939-4640|pmid=17079745|doi-access=}} It most often describes a temporary fluid congestion in the testicles or vulva, caused by prolonged sexual arousal without orgasm.{{Cite journal | last1 = Yazmajian| first1 = Richard V. | year = 1967 | title = The Influence of Testicular Sensory Stimuli on the Dream | url = http://www.pep-web.org/document.php?id=apa.015.0083a | journal = Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association | volume = 15 | pages = 83–98| pmid = 6032147 | doi = 10.1177/000306516701500103 | issue = 1 | s2cid = 7093435 }}{{Cite journal | last1 = Glenn| first1 = Jules | year = 1969 | title = Testicular and Scrotal Masturbation | url = http://www.pep-web.org/document.php?id=ijp.050.0353a | journal = International Journal of Psycho-Analysis | volume = 50 | pages = 353–362| pmid = 5387383 | issue = 3 }}

The term epididymal hypertension is derived from the epididymis, a part of the male reproductive system.{{Cite web |title=Epididyme {{!}} Sperm Storage, Vas Deferens & Testes {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/science/epididyme |access-date=2024-01-08 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica |language=en}} The term is also applied to females despite the lack of an epididymis in female anatomy. Professor Caroline Pukall, who co-wrote the first in-depth study on EH, has suggested using the term throbbing crotch syndrome.{{Cite web |last=Broderick |first=Timmy |title=The First In-Depth Study on 'Blue Balls' Reveals a Lot about Sex |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-first-in-depth-study-on-blue-balls-reveals-a-lot-about-sex/ |access-date=2024-01-08 |website=Scientific American |language=en}} The term "blue balls" is thought to have originated in the United States, first appearing in 1916.{{cite book |last1=Dalzell |first1=Tom |title=Sex Slang |last2=Victor |first2=Terry |date=December 2007 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-37180-3 |page=16}} Though lesser known, the equivalent of this phenomenon in females is informally referred to as "blue vulva", among other names. It is not to be confused with the inability to orgasm or the masturbatory practice of edging.