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Impotence Affects 18 Million American Men

February 2, 2007

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More than 18 million men in the United States over age 20 are impotent, according to a study by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The prevalence of erectile dysfunction was strongly linked with age, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and a lack of physical activity.

The findings, published in the American Journal of Medicine, also indicate that lifestyle changes, such as increased physical activity and measures to prevent cardiovascular disease and diabetes, may help prevent decreased erectile function.

"Physicians should be aggressive in screening and managing middle-aged and older patients for erectile dysfunction, especially among patients with diabetes or hypertension," said Elizabeth Selvin, PhD, MPH, lead author of the study and a faculty member in the Bloomberg School of Public Health's Department of Epidemiology.

"The associations of erectile dysfunction with diabetes and cardiovascular risk factors may serve as powerful motivators for men who need to make changes in their diet and lifestyle."

For the study, the research team analyzed data from 2,126 men who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Men who reported being "sometimes able" or "never able" to get and keep an erection were categorized as having erectile dysfunction, while men who reported being "always or almost always able" or "usually able" were not.

The overall prevalence of impotence among men in the United States was 18 percent. Men aged 70 and older were much more likely to report having the problem compared with only 5 percent in men between the ages of 20 and 40. Nearly half of all men in the study with diabetes also had erectile dysfunction.

Almost 90 percent of all men with erectile dysfunction had at least one risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including diabetes, hypertension, having poor cholesterol levels or being a current smoker. Impotent men also were less likely to have engaged in vigorous physical activity within the month prior to participation in the study.

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