Erectile dysfunction in diabetic patients

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is the most neglected complications of diabetes mellitus that reduce the quality of life. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the erectile dysfunction and related risk factors in diabetic patients. This descriptive analytical study was done on 700 diabetic men aged 20-69 years at Sina hospital and Abouzahr Health Center in Tehran- Iran during 2002-03. Patients were screened for erectile dysfunction using the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS software and Chi-Square test the P≤0.05 was considered to be significant. Prevalence of erectile dysfunction was 35.1%. Prevalence rate of erectile dysfunction was 25.8% and 36.7% in type 1 and type 2 diabetic patients, respectively (P<0.05). Prevalence of mild, moderate and severe erectile dysfunction were 5.6%, 19.6% and 10%, respectively. Prevalence of erectile dysfunction reached from 9.7% in men aged 20-30 years to 35% in those aged over 60 years (P<0.05). In comparison with reporting diabetes lasting≤5 years (25.4%), prevalence of erectile dysfunction was less than those reported diabetes 6-11 years (34.3%) and 12-30 years (43.5%) (P<0.05). Erectile dysfunction increased significantly in those who had poor glycemic control. Prevalence of erectile dysfunction in good, fair and poor glycemic control was 28.4%, 39% and 44.4%, respectively (P<0.05). This study showed that good glycemic control and reducing the cigaret smoking are necessary to reduce prevalence of erectile dysfunction in diabetic men.