RESULTS OF CASTRATION 13 



castration was done at the age of 46, erections still occurred, but 

 they were not accompanied by sexual sensations. On the other 

 hand the man castrated at the age of 21 said that he cohabited 

 every day, but that the erections did not persist for long; the 

 orgasm took place very quickly. Some other authors also relate 

 that erection and cohabitation are still possible after post- 

 puberal castration {Busquet, 1910, p. 250; Oberholzer, 1912, 

 two very careful observations from the standpoint of a psycho- 

 analyst). It seems that in regard to sexual libido and sexual 

 activity after postpuberal castration, great individual variation 

 may occur. But, nevertheless, the desirability of resorting 

 to castration should always be considered in cases of criminal 

 sexual behaviour. I saw myself a case of this kind with good 

 results after castration in Hirschf eld's " Institut fiir Sexual- 

 wissenschaft." 



In regard to the results of castration in women the available 

 observations almost exclusively concern postpuberal castra- 

 tion. The data are much less uniform than in the case of the 

 male. It is very probable that this lack of precision is due 

 to the fact that castration in women is performed, as a rule, 

 very late, and the external changes are of course less marked. 

 But in all cases an atrophy of the genital organs takes place; 

 an atrophy of the vagina and especially of the uterus. In 

 general, menstruation ceases, although some authors relate 

 having observed menstruation after castration. I think that 

 they were misled by an accidental haemorrhage. A very 

 marked accumulation of fat takes place, and we find there- 

 fore a marked augmentation of weight. The accumula- 

 tion of fat, however, is not present in all cases. The data on 

 the distribution of the hair after castration are also very 

 conflicting. In general it is agreed that the increased hair 

 growth on the face (the beard of old women) is a characteristic 

 feature of the castrated woman. But Tandler and Gross 

 found also in old Skopecs a fair growth of beard on the chin and 

 above the corners of the mouth, whereas the middle of the upper 

 lip, the skin under the chin, the cheek and the upper part of the 

 neck, which in normal men have a rich growth of hair, were 

 hairless. Such an abnormally localized beard corresponds 

 more to the beard so often found in old women (Tandler and 

 Gross, 1910 a, p. 249). So one might suppose that the hair- 

 growth of the aged woman after the climacteric is nothing else 



