As we have discussed extensively shock-wave treatment for erectile dysfunction is one of the most promising technologies developed lately that does not only treat erectile dysfunction as a symptom but actually aims to cure its most common underlying cause i.e. poor arterial blood flow in the penis by promoting angiogenesis. The efficacy of the first generation machine for shock-wave ED treatment, the ED1000 produced by Medi-spec, has been confirmed in a number of serious studies. Recently, a second generation machine, developed by Renova and based on slightly different technology, was introduced in the market. The advantage of this machine was that it requires just 1/3 of the treatment sessions that the Medispec machine requires, four against twelve, to achieve the same improvement. This means that in one month as opposed to three months the patients can complete the treatment protocol and at a significantly lower cost. However, although the technologies of the two machines are very similar, the Renova machine and the short treatment protocol had not been validated as extensively by serious clinical trials as the Medispec machine.
However, a new study, conducted by four well respected Urological-Andrological clinics in four different countries and published at the prestigious International Journal of Impotence Research, suggests that the Renova machine and the shorter treatment protocol can also have great results on vasculogenic erectile dysfunction patients.
In particular, fifty eight (58) patients aged 20 – 80 years old participated in total in this 6-month pilot study and the results were evaluated by the International Index of Erectile Function. The study included patients with mild to severe ED symptoms, with 22.4% of patients having severe symptoms, 37.9% moderate, 31.0% mild to moderate and 8.6% mild.
All patients had been previously diagnosed with vasculogenic ED, although the causes of ED were different, and were both responders and non responders to PDE-5 inhibitors.
The patients followed a program of four weekly treatment sessions in total. During each session 3600 shocks of 0.09 mJ mm2 were applied. Shocks were applied at the penis shaft at right corpus cavernosum and left corpus cavernosum, and at the crura at right crus and left crus, with 900 shocks at each area. The treatment areas were the same in each session, and at the end of the full treatment (four sessions) each area had received 3600 shocks of 0.09 mJ mm2 ².
The treatment had success in more than 80% of the cases (for 47 out of the 58 patients) and even for patients with severe symptoms of ED. Moreover the treatment had no side effects at all and did not cause pain. The researchers concluded that the results of the linear low-intensity shockwave treatment suggest a very promising treatment for erectile dysfunction.