This interview is one in a series of expert interviews on the eDrugstore.com blog. We add new interviews on a regular basis. Please see our complete list of insightful interviews.
1. What is the most common cause of erectile dysfunction for an otherwise healthy man?
This depends on the man’s age. In younger men, say under 40 years old, the commonest cause of erectile dysfunction is performance anxiety. This is the situation where, maybe after one “failure”, the man starts to watch himself getting an erection and then wondering if it will last and is it hard enough etc. This is hopeless. You cannot be up in the audience and down in the bed all at the same time. This type of erectile dysfunction is curable of course but it takes a little work.
In the older man, say over 50 and beyond, erectile dysfunction tends more to be caused by vascular problems or chronic illness and diabetes. There will nearly always be some element of anxiety too of course. It is important to remember though that today ALL erectile dysfunction is treatable without having to resort to implant.
2. What types of things might somebody suffering with ED be thinking and experiencing?
Erectile dysfunction or ED can make a man feel very inadequate and can put a real strain on a relationship. Guilt is another feeling that men with ED have. They blame themselves for a situation over which they seem to have no control. They are usually embarrassed and reluctant to talk about it to their loved one or to a doctor. This is a great pity because in 95% of cases something can be done to help them reclaim their sex lives.
3. Is erectile dysfunction always treatable?
Yes, regardless of the man’s age or the underlying cause of his ED something usually can be done. It may involve testosterone replacement therapy and/or inter-penile injection in the more extreme situations. But yes, where there is a will there will usually be a way.
4. What is your preferred method of treatment in most cases?
Obviously, there is no answer to this question as treatment or treatments will always depend on the underlying cause. However, this is a good time to have erectile dysfunction. Remember that twenty-five years ago there was little or nothing that we could offer men suffering from ED beyond platitudes and hocus pocus.
5. Is erectile dysfunction preventable? If yes, how so?
Lifestyle, as always, is important to help avoid getting ED. Keep fit, keep stress at bay, don’t drink too much, don’t smoke. Or, as we say in Ireland “Sure you know yourself.”
6. After going a length of time without being intimate, how can couples that have been dealing with erectile dysfunction reconnect once the ED problem is solved?
This is a good question. Or do they even want to be intimate again? The wife or partner of the man suffering from erectile dysfunction is I know often left out of the equation altogether. Very often, or indeed usually, she is not in on the consultation at all and the therapist has to make certain assumptions. I know I do this a lot and perhaps I should not. Another way to answer this question of course is to say that just because a man has erectile dysfunction does not necessarily mean that he stops being intimate. Every situation is different.
About Dr. Andrew Rynne – www.AndrewRynne.com
Dr. Andrew Rynne is a General Practitioner with a special interest in sexual dysfunction in men and women. He has over fifteen years experience in treating people with sexual dysfunction, absence or orgasm, arousal difficulties, low sex drive or libido. He is medical director of an Internet driven medical practise at www.andrewrynne.com He was the first doctor in Ireland to perform a vasectomy under local anaesthesia in 1974. In 1985 Dr. Rynne founded Clane General Hospital in Co. Kildare. Today Clane Hospital is a thriving health care in-patient facility catering for all the major medical and surgical disciplines and specialising in In-Vitro Fertilisation under the guidance of The Bornhall Clinic in London, the birth place of IVF treatments. Dr. Rynne is a Board Member of Clane General Hospital which now employs over 200 people. Author of three books — Smoking Is Your Decision, Abortion — The Irish Question and more recently a memoir The Vasectomy Doctor, Rynne was the subject of a RTE documentary in 2006 based on this memoir.
Read more of our expert interviews:
Betty Dodson, Renowned Sexologist, Author, Feminist, Educator
Dean Osborne, Human Nature of Cheating
Dr. MP Wylie, Relationship Advisor
We specialize in providing our over 1,000,000 customers with relevant product and condition information created by our professional editorial staff which includes our team of medical writers, medical practitioners, and health educators. eDrugStore.com Staff on Facebook