The right thing to do when faced with erectile dysfunction is to diagnose the cause or causes of the dysfunction in order to treat it appropriately. Thus, it is possible to provide testosterone easily when there is a testosterone deficiency or to carry out a psychological approach when it is shown that there are no physical alterations of the erection. Risk factors, especially vascular risk factors, must be corrected or treated appropriately (antihypertensive treatment, cholesterol-lowering treatment, weight loss, diet, physical exercise, smoking cessation, etc.). If toxic factors exist, methodologies should be established to suppress them. In the case of drugs, they can be eliminated if possible or replaced by others that do not affect erection so much.
What are the treatments?
In a large number of cases, treatment of the cause cannot be carried out and symptomatic treatment must be approached. It consists of applying methodologies that allow achieving an erection at the desired moment. The first line of therapy is given by the so-called oral 5-phosphodiesterase inhibitors such as sildenafil (Viagra (r)), tadalafil (Cialis (r)) and vardenafil (Levitra (r)). They act at the penile level favoring a greater persistence of the molecular elements responsible for erection. The choice of the most appropriate drug depends on different factors such as sexual frequency and habits.
If there is no good response to oral drugs, a vasodilator drug such as prostaglandin E can be injected into the penis. This same drug can be administered in the form of a small capsule inserted into the urethral meatus. A vacuum erection mechanism can also be applied. This is a mechanical system that consists of placing a cylinder around the penis to create a vacuum, which sucks blood into the organ, achieving rigidity that is maintained by means of a ring that is placed at the base of the penis at the same time as the mechanism is removed.
Sometimes, as in the case of certain diabetics with vascular and neurological alterations of erection, an adequate response is not achieved with the aforementioned treatments. In these cases, it is always possible to resort to the implantation of a penile prosthesis. It consists of implanting cylinders inside the corpora cavernosa (containing the erection tissue) which are filled with liquid from a reservoir placed in the scrotum or in the hypogastrium by activating a pump system inserted in the scrotum at the moment sexual activity is desired. In these cases, penile rigidity is maintained as long and as often as desired.
How to prevent erectile dysfunction?
Erectile dysfunction can be prevented by having a regular and frequent sexual life. The Mediterranean diet, physical exercise and the abandonment of toxic habits can avoid erectile problems, as well as the adequate control of diseases that can cause them. If erection failures persist, it is advisable to consult a specialist, without delaying it excessively, in order to be able to apply the most appropriate treatment.