Better Treatment For Erectile Dysfunction

KUALA LUMPUR, April 23 (Bernama) -- Malaysian men with erectile dysfunction (ED) can now have more control over the management of their condition via a new diagnostic tool called Erection Hardness Score (EHS).
Consultant urologist Dr Peter Ng Eng Pin from the Subang Jaya Medical Centre said the results of the treatment using the EHS had shown a significant improvement in sexual satisfaction, confidence and self-esteem in such men.
"In Malaysia, men with erectile dysfunction do not normally seek immediate treatment. But the new tool, which is based on a four-point scale to identify the different grades of erection as the optimal treatment goal, will enable them to bravely talk about their sexual performance," he told a press conference here organised by Pfizer Malaysia.
The EHS, as the first-target level for the treatment of ED, was launched at the European Association of Urology annual meeting in Berlin, Germany last month.
Based on the Pfizer Global Better Sex Survey, published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine in December last year, he said 35 percent of the Malaysian respondents were found to have moderate ED and another 11 percent with severe ED.
The survey of the sexual habits of 12,558 men and women in 27 countries, including Thailand, Japan, Finland and the United States, also revealed that Malaysian women rated the importance of hardness of erection with sexual satisfaction, he said.
Erectile dysfunction, which becomes more common with increasing age, affects between 13 and 28 percent of men, aged 40 to 80 years, worldwide.
Widely recognised as a couple's issue as it equally affects the partners of those suffering from the condition, it is projected that by 2025, a prevalence of about 322 million men worldwide will experience ED, an increase of 170 million in 1995.
It can also arise as a consequence of drug therapy, major surgery or radiotherapy, besides being a feature of a wide range of diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hyperlipidemia and hypertension.
Meanwhile, visiting British Association for Sexual and Relationship Therapy vice-chairman Victoria Lechmann said it was important for couples to develop dialogues and sexual intimacy and not being critical of their partner with ED symptoms by adjusting to the changing lifestyle. "In the United Kingdom, such couples smile more, have a better relationship and listen to each other's point of view as they have less anxieties after undergoing therapy together," said Lechmann, who runs two sexual dysfunction clinics back home.
She said many relationships suffered because partners did not talk more openly about their sexual needs or problems, which also affected their physical health in the long run.
Apart from medication, she did not rule out sex tools including vibrators, which are readily available in the UK of being useful, especially for women, to spice up a couple's sex life.