Erectile Dysfunction

An estimated 30 million men in the United States-10% of the male population-experience chronic erectile dysfunction, although as few as 5% seek treatment. It may affect 50% of men between the ages of 40 and 70. Transient lost or inadequate erection affects men of all ages.

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is the inability of a man to achieve or maintain an erection sufficient for his sexual needs or the needs of his partner. Most men experience this inability at some point in their lives, usually by age 40, and are not psychologically affected by it. Some men experience chronic, complete erectile dysfunction (impotence), and others achieve partial or brief erections. Frequent erectile dysfunction can cause emotional and relationship problems, and often leads to diminished self-esteem. It has many causes, most of which are treatable, and is not an inevitable consequence of aging.

In older men, ED usually has a physical cause, such as disease, injury, or side effects of drugs. Any disorder that causes injury to the nerves or impairs blood flow in the penis has the potential to cause ED. Incidence increases with age: About 5 percent of 40-year-old men and between 15 and 25 percent of 65-year-old men experience ED. But it is not an inevitable part of aging.

ED is treatable at any age, and awareness of this fact has been growing. More men have been seeking help and returning to normal sexual activity because of improved, successful treatments for ED.