The clitoris is even more sensitive than we thought and contains over 10,000 nerve fibres

It’s often described as the ‘female pleasure centre’, and a now a new study has revealed that the clitoris is even more sensitive than we thought.

Researchers from Oregon Health & Science University have completed the first-known count of nerve fibres in the erogenous zone.

Their findings suggest the clitoris contains over 10,000 nerve fibres – 20 per cent more than previously estimated.

‘It’s startling to think about more than 10,000 nerve fibres being concentrated in something as small as clitoris,’ said Dr Blair Peters, lead author of the study.

It’s often described as the ‘female pleasure centre’, and a now a new study has revealed that the clitoris is even more sensitive than we thought

Researchers from Oregon Health & Science University have completed the first-known count of nerve fibres in the erogenous zone. Their findings suggest the clitoris contains over 10,000 nerve fibres – 20 per cent more than previously estimated

The clitoris is the only human organ with the sole purpose of providing pleasure.

It’s made up of nerves that carry electrical impulses between the brain and the rest of the body, which enable women to feel and respond to touch.

While the tip of the clitoris is found outside the body, much of the organ is located internally. 

This includes the dorsal nerve – a wishbone-shaped nerve that runs down either side of the clitoral shaft and is responsible for clitoral sensation.

Previous studies in livestock have predicted that the clitoris contains around 8,000 nerve fibres.

But in the new study, the researchers set out to see if this count was accurate when performed on humans.

The team collected tissue from one side of the dorsal nerve from seven adults undergoing gender-affirming genital surgery.

Tissues were dyed and magnified 1,000 times under a microscope, allowing the researchers to count individual nerve fibres.

On average, the samples contained about 5,140 dorsal clitoral nerve fibres.

And because the dorsal nerve is symmetrical, this was multiplied by two to estimate the total number of dorsal clitoral nerve fibres – a whopping 10,281.

‘It’s particularly surprising when you compare the clitoris to other, larger structures of the human body,’ Dr Peters said.

The team collected tissue from one side of the dorsal nerve from seven adults undergoing gender-affirming genital surgery

‘The median nerve, which runs through the wrist and hand and is involved in carpal tunnel syndrome, is known for having high nerve fiber density.

‘Even though the hand is many, many times larger than the clitoris, the median nerve only contains about 18,000 nerve fibers, or fewer than two times the nerve fibers that are packed into the much-smaller clitoris.’

The team now hopes to study and count the number of nerve fibres in the glans penis – the tip of the penis – which is known to induce pleasure in men.

The study comes shortly after researchers from private gynaecology clinic New H Medical in New York revealed the best sex positions for female orgasm. 

Somewhat surprisingly, the team found that missionary is the best position for reaching female orgasm – as long as you use a pillow.

In the study, researchers from assessed blood flow to the clitoris during popular poses including missionary, sitting face-to-face and rear entry.

Their findings show that blood flow to the clitoris – a key step towards the ‘big O’ – is greatest when the man is on top during missionary, with a pillow placed beneath the woman’s pelvis.