The Truth About Impotence - Sexual Function

Written by Krista

It is unclear if orgasm occurs in lower animals

Question (from a 46-year-old Pennsylvania male):
With all the publicity associated with Viagra, several friends and I have discussed the product and our relative sexual function. We are all in our mid to late 40's, none of us suffer from hypertension or diabetes, we are not on medications. We are all married with children. We are perfectly functional, by that I mean we get erections and would never think of ourselves as impotent. But we have all aged. Our sex drive-libido is not as high. We all realize it comes with aging. What is much more of a disappointment is the diminished firmness of our erections. We all feel it is very noticeable and it is NOT in our heads. It doesn't get as hard as it used to. We can't help but wonder if Viagra enhances blood flow to the penis for someone who doesn't get any erection, would Viagra have the potential to improve blood flow for someone whose blood flow has decreased with aging but is not impotent per se.

DR. GOLDSTEIN:
If you (or any of your friends) meet the definition of erectile dysfunction, that is, you have a consistent (for at least six months) inability to obtain or maintain and erection of sufficient quality for satisfactory sexual intercourse, then you may wish to undergo evaluation and treatment by a local MD.

There is such a condition as mild erectile dysfunction - you don't need to wait until the dysfunction is severe.

Question (from a 26-year-old man in France):
I'm 26 and I have not had many sexual experiments. Unfortunately it seems that every time I try with a new girl, I fail to obtain a real erection, though I have no problem obtaining a hard and stable erection via masturbation.

So I wonder if the overwhelming experiment of having pre-sex pleasures with a girl could handicap my capacity of having a real erection afterwards. Is it possible that too much excitation causes temporary impotence because of some organic reason?

And finally, of course, would Viagra help?

DR. GOLDSTEIN:
Is it possible that too much excitation causes temporary impotence because of some organic reason? Too much excitement may lead to release of adrenaline and early loss of your erections. Try and relax under circumstances with a new girlfriend or seek professional counseling from a sex therapist.

next: Is Impotence Only a Biological Problem?