Evaluación de la autoestima en varones con disfunción eréctil tratados con sildenafilo. Análisis de un grupo de pacientes españoles procedentes de un estudio multicéntrico internacional

We determined the prevalence of and risks factors for erectile dysfunction in Spain in a cross-sectional study. A total of 2,476 noninstitutionalized Spanish men 25 to 70 years old were interviewed at home and answered a self-administered questionnaire of 71 items, including 2 instruments to define erectile dysfunction, a simple self-assessment question to estimate erectile function and the International Index of Erectile Function. Data on disease, medication and toxic habits were also obtained. With an overall participation rate of 75% the prevalence of erectile dysfunction according to the simple question was 12.1%. According to the erectile function domain of the International Index of Erectile Function the overall prevalence was 18.9%. Several independent risk factors were significantly associated with the probability of erectile dysfunction. Some differences arose according to the tool used to define the condition. However, there was a strong relationship of patient age with frequency or severity no matter which instrument was used to define erectile dysfunction. Diabetes (age adjusted odds ratio 4), high blood pressure (odds ratio 1.58), high cholesterol (1.63), peripheral vascular disorder (2.63), lung disease (3.11), prostate disease (2.93), cardiac problems (1.79), rheumatism (2.37) and allergy (3.08) were significantly associated with erectile dysfunction. Drug intake, which respondents called medication for nerves and sleeping pills, correlated strongly (odds ratio 2.78 and 4.27, respectively), as did tobacco use (2.5) and alcohol consumption (1.53). This study provides data on the prevalence of and risks factors for erectile dysfunction in Spain. The relationship of erectile dysfunction with certain risk factors, such as cardiovascular risk factors and drugs intake, are well known and our study corroborates these associations. Other associations with erectile dysfunction, such as prostate disease, allergy and rheumatism, support findings in previous reports, although to our knowledge the pathophysiological mechanisms remain unclear. Estimating the strength of the association of erectile dysfunction with distinct risk factors in terms of odds ratios enabled us to identify the factors to pursue when seeking to prevent erectile dysfunction. Furthermore, the relationship of tobacco with erectile dysfunction, which has been controversial in previous series, was well characterized in our study.

To assess health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in men with erectile dysfunction. Descriptive survey with general and disease-specific measures. The instrument contained three established, validated HRQOL measures, a validated comorbidity checklist, and sociodemographics. The RAND 36-Item Health Survey 1.0 (SF-36) was used to assess general HRQOL. Sexual function and sexual bother were assessed using the UCLA Prostate Cancer Index. The marital interaction scale from the Cancer Rehabilitation Evaluation System Short Form (CARES-SF) was used to assess each patient's relationship with his sexual partner. Urology clinics at a university medical center and the affiliated Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center. Thirty-five (67%) of 54 consecutive university patients presenting for erectile dysfunction and 22 (42%) of 52 VA patients who were awaiting a previously prescribed vacuum erection device participated. The university respondents scored slightly lower than population normals in social function, role limitations due to emotional problems, and emotional well-being. The VA respondents scored lower than expected in all eight domains. Scores for the VA population were significantly lower than those for the university population in physical function, role limitations due to physical problems, bodily pain, and social function. A significant correlation was seen between marital interaction and sexual function (r = -.33, p = .01) but not between marital interaction and sexual bother (r = -.15, p = .26) in the total sample. Sexual function also correlated significantly with general health perceptions (r = .34, p = .01), role limitations due to physical problems (r = .29, p = .03), and role limitations due to emotional problems (r = .30, p = .03). Sexual bother did not correlate with any of the general HRQOL domains. Affluent men reported better sexual function (p = .03). The emotional domains of the SF-36 are associated with more profound impairment than are the physical domains in men with erectile dysfunction. Erectile dysfunction and the bother it causes are discrete domains of HRQOL and distinct from each other in these patients. With increased attention to patient-centered medical outcomes, greater emphasis has been placed on such variables as HRQOL. This should be particularly true for a patient-driven symptom, such as erectile dysfunction.