Erectile Dysfunction

What Causes Erectile Dysfunction?

In order for men to achieve an erection, a number of things need to be functioning correctly:

• The nerves in the penis must be functioning properly
• The blood circulation to the penis must be adequate and the internal erection mechanism must be intact
• The veins must be able to “trap and keep” the blood inside the penis
• There must be a stimulus from the brain

Any interference with the system above may result in sporadic or permanent erection problems.

Common causes of erectile dysfunction include:

• Diseases that affect blood flow such as atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) or endothelium dysfunction
• Nerve diseases
• Psychological factors such as stress, depression, and performance anxiety
• Injuries to the penis or surrounding area
• Chronic illness, certain medications, and a condition called Peyronie’s disease (scar tissue in the penis)
• Sporadic erectile dysfunction (less than in 1 in 5 intercourse situations) may also result from alcohol, substance abuse, stress or fatigue

However, our Doctors experience suggests that even a single episode of erection dysfunction can induce stress and performance anxiety which can lead to further episodes of erectile dysfunction.

Given the above, it is apparent that it is important to determine the severity of your erectile dysfunction. In order to do so, you should consider the following:

• At the time of your experience, did you consume excessive amounts of alcohol or other narcotic substances?
• Are you experiencing out of the ordinary stress for any reason before sexual intercourse?
• Were you very fatigued?
• Where there any other factors that might have resulted in low sexual desire in this particular instance?

Please contact us to discuss your concerns and particular circumstances before booking a medical appointment.

If you have a family history of cardiovascular disease and experience an episode of erectile dysfunction, we highly recommend that you visit a doctor, as studies have shown that erectile dysfunction is often an early sign of cardiovascular disease.

I am suffering from Erectile Dysfunction, what should I do next?

We advise you to book a consultation with our highly experienced doctors. The first step towards an accurate diagnosis is an investigation of possible causes by our specialists.

After this, our doctors will aim to do two things:

• design a treatment plan that will allow you to immediately achieve a strong erection to continue normal sexual activities.
• design a treatment plan to address the underlying causes of your ED, this means that each treatment we offer in our clinic is highly personalised.