{"id":10892,"date":"2017-12-15T08:00:51","date_gmt":"2017-12-15T08:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.viamedic.com\/blog\/?p=4459"},"modified":"2017-12-15T08:00:51","modified_gmt":"2017-12-15T08:00:51","slug":"male-impotence-and-lower-urinary-tract-symptoms-what-you-should-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.edrugstore.com\/blog\/erectile-dysfunction\/male-impotence-and-lower-urinary-tract-symptoms-what-you-should-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Male Impotence and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms: What You Should Know"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Male
Lower urinary tract symptoms are diagnosed with increasing frequency in older men, many of whom also experience erectile dysfunction.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Medical researchers in recent years have begun examining more closely the relationship between lower urinary tract symptoms and erectile dysfunction in older men.<\/p>\n

Beneath the overall umbrella of lower urinary tract symptoms, or LUTS, in males are a number of specific disorders that are diagnosed most often in older men. Such disorders include urinary incontinence, overactive bladder, dysuria (difficult or painful urination), bladder outlet obstruction, and benign prostatic hyperplasia, a noncancerous enlargement of the prostate gland.<\/p>\n

Because of the interconnectedness of the various organs of the lower urinary tract in men, it is hardly surprising that trouble in the function of one or more of those organs might also lead to a significantly higher risk of ED.<\/p>\n

Relationship Is Subject of Multiple Studies<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over the last couple of decades, there has been an increase in the study of both erectile dysfunction and LUTS and their comorbidity — the simultaneous presence of two or more diseases or conditions in the same patient.<\/p>\n

A research study conducted by urologists at Taiwan\u2019s Cardinal Tien Hospital points out in its introduction that benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH, is the primary cause of LUTS in men 50 and older. The study also notes that increased research into the link between LUTS and ED can be explained by the growing incidence of both these conditions in older men and their negative impact on the men\u2019s quality of life.<\/p>\n

Causal Link Not Well Established<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Taiwanese study, published in the December 2011 issue of \u201cUrological Science,\u201d<\/a> acknowledges that the causal link between ED and LUTS has not been well established. However, it points out that the relationship between male impotence and LUTS is supported by \u201cfour main pathophysiological mechanisms with varying degrees of overlap.\u201d<\/p>\n

These mechanisms include the nitric oxide\/nitric oxide synthase theory, autonomic hyperactivity, the Rho-kinase activation pathway, and pelvic atherosclerosis. It is the last of these mechanisms, pelvic atherosclerosis, that a team of Japanese researchers explored in detail in a more recent study, published in the June 2017 issue of \u201cProstate International.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

The Japanese research team was drawn from the urology departments at Juntendo University\u2019s Graduate School of Medicine and Urayasu Hospital and from the Men\u2019s Health Clinic Tokyo. Atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaque on the inside walls of arteries, is a major contributing factor in a wide array of disorders and diseases, not the least of which is cardiovascular disease.<\/p>\n

Researchers Focus on Genitourinary Plaques<\/strong><\/p>\n

However, it is the buildup of plaque within the arteries of the genitourinary tract upon which the Japanese researchers focused their attention. The subjects of their study were 303 outpatients who came to the Men\u2019s Health Clinic Tokyo with symptoms of late-onset hypogonadism, a condition characterized by low levels of testosterone and a decreased interest in sex and difficulty achieving erection.<\/p>\n

The patients were subjected to laboratory tests to determine the degree to which they suffered from several key factors known to influence atherosclerosis. Such factors include abdominal circumference and blood levels of triglyceride, fasting blood sugar, and total testosterone.<\/p>\n

Participants Questioned About Urological Symptoms<\/strong><\/p>\n

The study participants were also asked to fill out specific questionnaires designed to assess urological symptoms. These questionnaires included the Erection Hardness Score (EHS) and the Sexual Health Inventory for Men, or SHIM, to gauge erectile status. Others questionnaires included the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and QOL (Quality of Life) Index for LUTS, as well as the Aging Male Symptoms (AMS) rating scale for late-onset hypogonadism.<\/p>\n

To assess the degree of arterial stiffness in study participants, researchers calculated brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) by measurements of pulse transmission time and the distance between the brachial artery and ankle artery by a validated noninvasive and automated waveform analyzer. These individual baPWV measurements were then compared with the widely accepted standard baPWV for men of comparable age.<\/p>\n

Only Nocturia Linked to Atherosclerosis<\/strong><\/p>\n

In their conclusion, Japanese researchers said that they found that atherosclerosis was clearly implicated in men who were suffering from erectile dysfunction. However, the only form of LUTS they could link definitively to atherosclerosis was excessive nighttime urination, a condition known scientifically as nocturia or nocturnal polyuria.<\/p>\n

A large-scale British research study, published in the July 2013 issue of the \u201cInternational Journal of Clinical Practice,\u201d<\/a> emphasized the importance of testing for ED in patients diagnosed with LUTS, and vice-versa. It said that despite increasing evidence of causal links between ED and specific manifestations of LUTS, many medical professionals fail to look for symptoms of one when diagnosing the other in a patient.<\/p>\n

A Litany of Excuses Provided<\/strong><\/p>\n

Authors of the study acknowledge that doctors who fail to look for signs of erectile dysfunction in patients with LUTS provide a litany of explanations for their failure to do so. Such excuses include a lack of time, embarrassment at the subject matter, respect for patient privacy, a lack of confidence about the disorders, and difficulty in knowing how — and what — to ask. Other reasons that doctors give for their failure to inquire about sexual dysfunction in LUTS patients include conservative sexual beliefs, insufficient knowledge of sexual health, and insufficient knowledge of a patient\u2019s special sexual profile.<\/p>\n

Authors of the U.K. study also note that exhaustive exploration of both ED and LUTS complaints with patients might lead to remedial measures that could prevent the development of more serious manifestations of cardiovascular disease.<\/p>\n

Early Warning of Cardiovascular Disease<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is widely accepted that erectile dysfunction — and to a lesser degree, LUTS — can be an early warning that the patient is at an increased risk of experiencing a heart attack or stroke. The most common cause of ED is insufficient blood flow to the penis. This type of ED is treated with oral medications known as PDE5 inhibitors, such as Viagra, Levitra, and Cialis. These drugs are so called for their ability to temporarily disable the phosphodiesterase-5 enzyme, which can sabotage erectile function in men whose vascular systems are already compromised.<\/p>\n

\"Male
While widely acknowledged as a major cause of cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis — the buildup of fatty plaques on the inner walls of arteries — is also implicated as a cause of erectile dysfunction and some lower urinary tract symptoms.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As you\u2019ve seen, the role of atherosclerosis in ED is undisputed. Because the arteries that supply the male genitals are smaller than those that carry oxygen and nutrients to the heart and brain, symptoms of ED are more likely to surface first, well before more serious cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke.<\/p>\n

Lifestyle Changes Can Help<\/strong><\/p>\n

Patients diagnosed with ED can in many cases prevent the continuing buildup of fatty plaque on artery walls by making some commonsense changes in their lifestyle. Eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, losing weight, and quitting smoking can all go a long way toward improving cardiovascular health and minimizing added damage to artery walls.<\/p>\n

The U.K. study also notes that the PDE5 inhibitors prescribed to treat erectile dysfunction have also been shown to help reduce some of the more commonly observed LUTS. In the conclusion to its study, the U.K. research team observes: \u201cThe ability to treat both LUTS and ED together with one medication and lifestyle advice is worthy of consideration.\u201d<\/p>\n

If this article has piqued your interest and you would like to stay abreast of recent developments on the consumer health front, particularly news related to sexual health and function, follow our blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Medical researchers in recent years have begun examining more closely the relationship between lower urinary tract symptoms and erectile dysfunction in older men. Beneath the overall umbrella of lower urinary tract symptoms, or LUTS, in males are a number of specific disorders that are diagnosed most often in older men. Such disorders include urinary incontinence, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4460,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_autoblog_aioseo_focus_keyphrase":"","_autoblog_aioseo_title":"","_autoblog_aioseo_description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[194],"class_list":["post-10892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-erectile-dysfunction","tag-male-impotence"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t