ED: Treatment
How is ED treated?
Most physicians suggest that treatments proceed from least to most invasive. For some men, making a few healthy lifestyle changes may solve the problem. Quitting smoking, losing excess weight, and increasing physical activity may help some men regain sexual function.
Cutting back on any drugs with harmful side effects is considered next. For example, drugs for high blood pressure work in different ways. If you think a particular drug is causing problems with erection, tell your doctor and ask whether you can try a different class of blood pressure medicine.
Psychotherapy and behavior modifications in selected patients are considered next if indicated, followed by oral or locally injected drugs, vacuum devices, and surgically implanted devices. In rare cases, surgery involving veins or arteries may be considered.
Psychotherapy
Experts often treat psychologically based ED using techniques that decrease the anxiety associated with intercourse. The patient's partner can help with the techniques, which include gradual development of intimacy and stimulation. Such techniques also can help relieve anxiety when ED from physical causes is being treated.
Source: National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NKUDIC) (December 2005). Erectile Dysfunction (NIH Publication No. 06–3923). Retrieved March 3, 2008, from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), National Institutes of Health of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Web site: http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pubs/impotence/index.htm
