Wanted: women to test the orgasmatron

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Women incapable of achieving orgasms can now have a device implanted in their spines that will trigger the sensation for them.

New Scientist magazine said Wednesday clinical trials of the "orgasmatron" have started following recent approval of the Food and Drug Administration.

The device was the focus of massive media attention two years ago, after New Scientist broke the news of its existence and used the term "orgasmatron" to describe it.

But the surgeon who patented the treatment, Dr. Stuart Meloy, says he's experiencing problems obtaining volunteers for the clinical trial.

Only one woman has completed the first stage of the trial, and one other is now just starting. Meloy hopes to find eight more to complete the first stage of the study, in which wires connected to a battery pack are inserted through the skin and into the woman's spinal cord.

Meloy, a pain specialist at Piedmont Anesthesia and Pain Consultants in Winston-Salem, told New Scientist the trial's second stage will consist of a self-contained device resembling a pacemaker being implanted beneath the skin, switched on and off with a remote control.

He expects a full implant to cost around $13,000.