Can An Enlarged Prostate Cause Ed
While an enlarged prostate does not cause ED, some BPH treatments may affect the ability to keep an erection, so its important to talk to your doctor to understand possible BPH treatment side effects.
Certain BPH medications may cause decreased sex drive and ED as a side effect.4 For instance, studies have shown a connection between certain anti-testosterone drugs and ED.5 If BPH symptoms continue even after medication therapy, your doctor may suggest a surgical treatment to remove the extra prostate tissue causing your BPH. However, surgical treatment also comes with side effects. A common surgical treatment, transurethral resection of the prostate , has also been shown to cause ED in a small percentage of men.5
You and your doctor may discuss a minimally invasive BPH treatment option, Rezm Water Vapor Therapy. Rezm Therapy treats the cause of BPH by using the natural energy stored in water vapor to remove the extra prostate tissue that is causing urinary issues while preserving sexual function. A five-year clinical study showed that men who had treatment with Rezm Therapy for their BPH did not suffer any procedure-related ED.6 It also showed that the quality of life improved for those men who had Rezm Therapy.6 Learn more about how Rezm Therapy works.
Treatment For Erectile Dysfunction When You Have Prostate Issues
If you have prostate conditions such as BPH or prostate cancer and erectile dysfunction, there may be treatments that you can use to help regain some or all of your erectile function.â
Oral medications like Sildenafil or Tadalafil are often used as first-line treatment for erectile dysfunction. These medications work by helping to improve and enhance blood flow to the penile tissues when you are aroused. However, these medications may not be appropriate for you if you have cardiovascular problems or take certain medications like nitrates.
If oral medications do not work for you or you are not a good candidate for them, injection medications to bring blood flow to the penile area like Alprostadil or compounded âTrimixâ or âBimixâ injections may be able to help you. These medications are injected into the side of the penis before sexual activity. Injection medications are the most effective treatment for men who have ED due to prostate surgery.
An insertable urethral suppository containing Alprostadil called Muse may also help with ED in some men. If oral or injectable medications are not a good fit for you, vacuum or surgical options including a penile pump, a penile band, surgical implants, or vascular surgery may be able to help you maintain or achieve an erection.
If you have a prostate condition along with erectile dysfunction, there are many potential treatment options, and your doctor can help you find the best ones for you.
How Soon After Prostate Cancer Treatment Can I Be Sexually Active Again
This will depend on what type of treatment you have had and how you feel. It could be several weeks, for others it may be a lot longer for erections to return. Some men will never be able to keep an erection without the help of artificial methods like medicines or medical devices . If you were having problems having erections before treatment, this will not get better after treatment.
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Treatments For Erection Problems And Penile Rehabilitation
Different treatments work for different people and they can have side effects. Talk through your options with a doctor or nurse with expertise in this area. Ask them to refer you to your local Erectile Dysfunction Clinic if they are not able to give you this specialist advice.
As well as causing erection difficulties, surgery and radiotherapy can cause a shortening in the length and width of the penis. So treatments for erection difficulties are part of a programme called penile rehabilitation. This is also called erectile dysfunction rehabilitation.
The aim of penile rehabilitation is to:
- maintain blood flow to the penis
- reduce damage to the muscle and tissue in the penis
- provide a stimulus for erections
Using and stimulating the penis keeps the tissues active and prevents them from becoming inflexible
This can hopefully help you to adapt to changes in your sexual function and relationships.
A penile rehabilitation programme includes:
- counselling and sex therapy
- pellet injections into the shaft of the penis
- healthy living such as exercise, weight control not smoking and pelvic floor exercises
Management Of Erectile Dysfunction By Prostate Cancer Patients
There are numerous types of treatments to address erectile dysfunction and improve patients quality of life. According to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, these include oral medications for erectile dysfunction, sildenafil , tadalafil , and vardenafil , relax the muscles in the penis, allowing blood to rapidly flow in. On average, the drugs take about an hour to begin working the erection helping effects of sildenafil and vardenafil last for about 8 hours and tadalafil about 36 hours. About 75% of men who undergo nerve-sparing prostatectomy or more precise forms of radiation therapy have reported successfully achieving erections after using these drugs.
Men with heart problems are, however, recommended not to take these type of drugs. Surgery is also an option, but it tends to be a final option. To address erectile dysfunction, a penile implant, which is a narrow flexible plastic tube, is surgically inserted along the length of the penis. Then, surgeons attach a small balloon-like structure filled with fluid in the abdominal wall and a small button is released into the testicle. The button can later be pressed and the fluid rushes from the ballon into the plastic tube, resulting in an erection.
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Assessing Your Cardiovascular Health
Your GP may assess your cardiovascular health. Narrowed blood vessels are a common cause of erectile dysfunction and linked with cardiovascular disease .
Your GP may:
- reducing stress
As well as helping to improve your erectile dysfunction, these changes can also improve your general health and may help to reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease .
Read more about preventing cardiovascular disease
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What Can I As A Partner Expect
One of the effects of prostate cancer treatment is erectile dysfunction or impotence. This means that your partner may not be able to have erections that are hard enough for him to have sex with you or that he may not be interested in sex because of the medicine he is taking to treat his prostate cancer. This affects not only the man, but you, too, as his intimate partner. If you are the partner of a man with erectile dysfunction, it can be difficult to cope with changes in your sexual relationship. Sometimes men struggle to come to terms with changes in their body image or their ability to perform sexually. This can sometimes result in him staying away from intimate situations where he may feel under pressure to make love. As a partner you may feel rejected by what seems like a lack of sexual interest or intimacy. This may not have anything to do with his feelings for you, but is a result of his cancer treatment. Erectile dysfunction can be difficult for both of you. You may want to reassure your partner that:
- Sex is not as important as long as he is healthy and that he is no less of a man to you
- You will work through it with him
- You understand his feelings
- He is important to you
It may help if you explain to your partner how important nonsexual touching and intimacy such as kissing and cuddling is to you.
Future Treatments For Ried
Stem cells in rat model of RiED
Stem cells are naturally occurring cells that repopulate healthy tissue and aid in the repair of damaged tissue. Qiu et al reported significant decrease in erectile function postradiation and found that injection of adipose-derived stem cells can ameliorate RiED in a rat model. Fandel et al were the first to provide evidence that intracavernosal injected SCs rapidly disappeared from the injection site and migrated to major pelvic ganglia in rats with cavernous nerve injury. Later, Qiu et al established RiED as a target for SC therapy and showed that IC injection of stem cells was able to treat both acute and chronic CN injury-induced ED., Kovanecz et al showed that IC injection of SkMSC alone or in combination with oral sildenafil was able to normalize erectile function in rats with CN injury. There has been a lot of progress in this field of research. SC transplantation has mostly been done by IC injection, but more recent studies try alternative routes, such as intravenous injection, periprostatic injection, and scaffolding. To gain more of an understanding of how SCs exert their therapeutic effects postradiation treatment, research efforts need to shift the preference for functional outcomes toward the elucidation of mechanisms.
Shockwave therapy for the treatment of RiED
Nutritional supplementation in RiED
Nerve graft and tissue engineering
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Urinary Symptoms Linked To Sexual Dysfunction
In this study, published in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, researchers studied 2,115 men between the ages of 40 and 79. The men completed questionnaires about their sexual function and urinary tract symptoms every two years.
Researchers found that each of the indicators of sexual function was inversely related to the severity of urinary tract symptoms reported by the men. As the men’s urinary symptoms increased, their level of sexual function decreased.
After adjusting for age, urinary tract symptoms resulting from an enlarged prostate that were most strongly associated with sexual dysfunction were:
- A feeling of urgency
- Needing to get up multiple times at night to urinate
- A weak urine stream
These symptoms were associated with:
- Difficulty getting or maintaining an erection
- The way men felt about problems with sexual drive, erection, and ejaculation
- Sexual satisfaction problems
However, the association with men’s urinary tract symptoms and sexual dysfunction diminished with advancing age. No association between these symptoms and most sexual problems were found in men over age 70.
Researchers say that because both of these conditions are common in aging man, it may be very difficult to see if a true association exists outside of an age-related one.
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Getting Treatment And Support
Speak to your GP or doctor or nurse at the hospital.
Your GP, hospital doctor or nurse can prescribe treatment for erection problems for free on the NHS, whether its for sex or masturbation. There may be a limit on how much treatment they can prescribe, but there is no age limit.
Talking about sex
It can be difficult talking about sex, but talking to your doctor, nurse or other health professional will mean you can get treatment and support. It can also help you feel more positive and more in control.
You can ask about sexual problems at any stage before, during or after your prostate cancer treatment. Talking about it before your treatment will mean you know what to expect and can help you to prepare to start treatments for sexual problems soon afterwards.
Your team should ask you about your erections and sex life during your treatment for prostate cancer. But if they dont then you may need to bring it up yourself.
Not everyone is used to talking about sex. You might need to bring it up more than once, or with a different person in your team. You can also ask to be referred to an expert in sexual problems or an ED clinic they will be used to talking about sexual problems.
Our sexual support service
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Why Erectile Dysfunction May Result From Prostate Disease
In the past, it was thought that most cases of erectile dysfunction were psychological in origin, the result of such demons as performance anxiety or more generalized stress. While these factors can cause erectile dysfunction, doctors now think that 70% of the time the problem can be traced to a physical condition that restricts blood flow, hampers nerve functioning, or both. Such conditions include diabetes, kidney disease, multiple sclerosis, atherosclerosis, vascular disease, and alcoholism.
However, some types of prostate disease and treatments may also be responsible.
High Intensity Focused Ultrasound Or Cryotherapy
Treatments such as High Intensity Focused Ultrasound or cryotherapy may cause fewer erection problems. Researchers are still looking into these treatments and their long term side effects. There is still a risk of erection problems with these treatments. For example, to treat your cancer properly, the doctor may not be able to avoid the nerves.
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Current Treatment Options Of Ried
Although treatment of prostate cancer confers increased risk of ED, there are many additional causes of ED, both medical and psychosocial, that can contribute to the sexual heath of an individual patient. Known factors include, but are not limited to, increasing age, diabetes mellitus, peripheral vascular disease, smoking, anxiety, and depression therefore, treatment should be instituted using a multifaceted approach including an attempt to address comorbid conditions that could be exacerbating RiED. demonstrates the current treatment options for ED patients and the benefits and limitations of each treatment.
When To Get Medical Advice
See a GP if you have symptoms of prostatitis, such as pelvic pain, difficulty or pain when peeing, or painful ejaculation.
They’ll ask about the problems you’re having and examine your tummy.
You may also have a rectal examination. This is where a doctor inserts a gloved finger into your bottom to feel for anything unusual. You may have some discomfort during this examination if your prostate is swollen or tender.
Your urine will usually be tested for signs of infection, and you may be referred to a specialist for further tests to rule out other conditions.
See a GP straight away if you get sudden and severe symptoms of prostatitis.
You may have acute prostatitis, which needs to be assessed and treated quickly because it can cause serious problems, such as suddenly being unable to pee.
If you have persistent symptoms , you may be referred to a doctor who specialises in urinary problems .
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History Of Ed Treatment
The first documentation of ED dates back to 2000 BC when Hippocrates reported a number of cases among wealthy men of ancient Greece early ED treatment involved therapies such as the injection of sheep testis extract. In the 1940s, testosterone was purified however, the results of its use as a treatment for ED were disappointing., Similarly, the use of androgens, when compared with placebo, did not increase the ability to obtain an erection. In 1960, the youth equivalence device, penis pump, was invented by Osbon and remains one of the most effective devices to treat ED. In 1995, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the prescription medication Caverject for the treatment of ED. This drug is injected directly into the base of the penis 5 minutes before a sexual encounter, which increases blood flow and produces an erection. Prostaglandin, used as an intraurethral suppository, was introduced as a treatment for ED in 1997. Sildenafil , the most common treatment for ED, was US Food and Drug Administrationapproved in 1998, followed by vardenafil and tadalafil in 2003. There are new gels, pills, and injections in development, all of which aim to benefit patients experiencing ED. Notably, these drugs target relaxation of the corpus cavernosum and do not directly treat neurogenic ED.
Natural Ways To Overcome Erectile Dysfunction
Can you run as fast as you did when you were 20 years old? Hit a baseball as far as you once could? Bash a tennis ball with the same speed and spin?
Probably not.
But even as we age, there are still plenty of ways to stay in the game and enjoy it. That’s as true of sex as it is of sports.
Erectile dysfunction can occur for many reasons. Sometimes it is as simple as the side effect of a particular medication. But for roughly 75% of men, the cause is more complex. ED may result from vascular disease, neurological disease, diabetes, or prostate-related treatments or surgeries.
Whether you currently suffer from ED or are hoping to sidestep this condition, try these tips to overcome ED for better health and a better sex life.
For more on diagnosing, treating, and learning how to overcome ED, read What to do about Erectile Dysfunction, a Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School.
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Eating Diet And Nutrition
Researchers have not found that eating, diet, and nutrition play a role in causing or preventing prostatitis. During treatment of bacterial prostatitis, urologists may recommend increasing intake of liquids and avoiding or reducing intake of substances that irritate the bladder. Men should talk with a health care provider or dietitian about what diet is right for them.
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