Erectile dysfunction, often referred to as impotence, is the inability to have or maintain an erection sufficient for successful sexual activity. Especially men over the age of 40, approximately one in every two men has erection problems. The frequency of erectile dysfunction increases with advancing age due to diabetes, hypertension, smoking, benign prostatic hyperplasia, hyperlipidemia and the side effects of some medications.
Today, the first-line treatment method used in the treatment of erectile dysfunction is drug therapy. The mechanisms of action of the drugs are similar, but there are minor differences in terms of onset of action, length of effect and side effects. The medications increase blood flow and help create an erection in the penis in response to sexual stimulation. This group of drugs is not suitable for everyone, for example, it is not recommended for use in men who have recently had a stroke, in the presence of severe heart failure or coronary artery disease treated with nitrates.
In cases where oral medications do not help, an application technique called intracavernosal injection can be used as a second-line treatment method. In this method, erection enhancing drugs are injected into the penis. However, this method has difficulties in implementation. Another method used in second-line treatment is vacuum devices.
An alternative treatment is penile prosthesis surgery in patients where previous methods were not successful and stenosis in the penile arteries was detected in Doppler ultrasonography. Penile prosthesis surgery involves surgically placing prostheses on both sides of the penis. These prostheses consist of inflatable (pump) or bendable rods. Inflatable devices allow you to control when and for how long you have an erection. In the flexible penis prosthesis, the penis is always hard but flexible thanks to the rods placed. In both bendable and inflatable prostheses, there is no structure visible outside the skin after surgery, and the procedure is performed in a way that remains completely inside the body.
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