It's almost time to vote!  

On August 28, during the World Meeting on Sexual Medicine, the ISSM will hold elections to fill the following vacant positions on the Board of Directors: President Elect, Secretary General, and two (2) Members-at-Large.

Below, you'll find statements from each candidate, addressing his or her professional and educational background, qualifications for leadership, and reasons for wanting to serve the ISSM:

President Elect

Wayne Hellstrom, USA

Secretary General

Annamaria Giraldi, Denmark

Watcharaphol Kamnerdsiri, France

Luiz Otavio Torres, Brazil

Member at Large

Tarek Anis, Egypt

Gregory Broderick, USA

Emmanuele Jannini, Italy

Michal Lew-Starowicz, Poland

Kwangsung Park, Korea

The elections will take place during the ISSM business meeting on August 28 from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in the Chicago Ballroom VI / VII.  The results will be announced immediately.

Tarlov cysts - fluid filled sacs that form on the sacral area of the spine - may be a cause of persistent genital arousal disorder (PGAD), according to American researchers.

Women with PGAD feel an ongoing sense of genital arousal, but without sexual interest. The condition can last for hours or days and usually causes distress.

The cause of PGAD is unclear. In this study, however, researchers found that two-thirds of their participants, women with PGAD, also had Tarlov cysts. Future research could investigate this link as a possible cause, the authors suggest.

The study was published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine.  Click here to learn more about PGAD, Tarlov cysts, and the authors' findings.