A simple sneeze may be a tell-tale sign of sexual arousal for a select few, research suggests.

Two British doctors investigated the phenomenon after reading of a middle-aged patient who had uncontrollable sneezing fits when he thought of sex.

The researchers, Dr Mahmood Bhutta and Dr Harold Maxwell, also uncovered three people who claimed to sneeze after orgasm.

Dr Bhutta, a specialist in ear, nose and throat medicine at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital, said the phenomenon could be more widespread than thought and might even be inherited.

His papers also describes how genetics can explain why around one in four people sneeze as a response to sunlight.

Sneezing usually occurs in response to nasal irritation, triggering a reflex that expels air at speeds of around 150 kilometres an hour.

Mr Andrew McCombe, an ENT consultant at Frimley Park Hospital said there was a possible physiological explanation for a link between sexual arousal and sneezing.

He said during arousal the autonomic nervous system fires off signals to trigger changes in the genitals of both men and women.

However, the nose also contains erectile tissue, and this may also become engorged during arousal, triggering the need to sneeze.

There is a condition known as honeymoon rhinitis, in which men and women experience nasal stuffiness during sex.