現今所稱的性功能障礙，在過去有許多別的名稱。對於這些“傳統”的名稱，現代術語學僅僅通過科學研究的進步就可以給予科學命名，因為科學研究使得人們對於人類性活動涉及到的生物學和心理社會學因素方面有了不斷的深入瞭解。這就意味著，今天我們不僅用各種各樣的術語描述某些舊有的性問題，而且領會和以恰到好處的不同方式定義這些性問題。

What we today call sexual dysfunctions was known by many other names in the past. Our modern terminology became possible only through the progress of scientific research that provided an ever better understanding of the biological and psychosocial factors involved in human sexual activity. This means that, today we not only use different terms for some very old problems, but we also see and define these problems in a very different way.