Causes of male sexual dysfunction
Let’s talk about some of the reasons for male sexual dysfunction. Sexual dysfunction is a common condition that patients present to the urologist or any other doctor for. It is also known as erectile dysfunction. Erectile dysfunction can be caused by a host of factors both behavioral and natural. Men, as they age, have lower testosterone levels naturally, and sometimes this will cause erectile dysfunction. Behavioral factors such as smoking, alcohol or drug abuse can also contribute to erectile dysfunction.
You know, a thorough history should include questioning about their social behaviors such as smoking, drinking alcohol or taking any other drugs or prescription medicines. And a physical exam should consist of assessing pulses in their femoral region and doing a complete prostate and genital exam.
How to treat erectile dysfunction
Now I want to talk about some of the current treatment options for erectile dysfunction. Once low testosterone is ruled out as a cause of erectile dysfunction, other treatment options can be considered. The first treatment option or first-line therapy for erectile dysfunction are oral medications. The names of these medicines have been widely publicized by the media: Viagra, Cialis, and Levitra. After oral drugs have been tried in either, don’t work for the patient or not indicated for that specific patient, the other therapies for erectile dysfunction include:
- a vacuum erection device or penis enlargement pump;
- injectable treatments to increase blood flow to the patient’s penis;
- male enhancement supplements, like GNC Men’s Staminol Ultra;
- or penile implant which is implanted surgically.
Da Vinci surgical robot
Now, will tell you a little bit about da Vinci surgical robot. The da Vinci robot is a robot that assists surgeons doing laparoscopic surgery. The robot does not do the operation; the surgeon does the surgery. That is important to point out. But the robot helps the surgeon do the surgery better. As opposed to standard laparoscopic surgery, also, to that, the visualization and magnification are far superior.
Urologic issues in men and women
As urologists, I want to talk about some of the urologic problems that women face. Two of the issues that affect both sexes, but predominantly women, are stress urinary incontinence or urge urinary incontinence.
Stress urinary incontinence is a condition where your leakage of urine can be caused by an increase in abdominal pressure, which is usually caused by laughing, sneezing, bending down. This can be managed using straightforward outpatient surgical techniques.
Urge urinary incontinence meaning when a patient has to go, they cannot hold back their urinary stream. It is another type of urinary incontinence. This can be caused by many factors. After medications have been tried and if they fail, further therapy can be considered for urge urinary incontinence in urinary frequency. Such treatment is called sacral stimulation. This helps them increase the time up between urinary urge episodes and urinary voiding episodes. And it is a simple outpatient procedure they can be tested for in the office and done at as the same day surgery.