Does Physical Therapy For Erectile Dysfunction Work? – Introduction
Erectile dysfunction is a disorder that impacts millions of men worldwide. ED means that you cannot form or maintain an erection that is suitable for sex. The number of cited treatments for ED is vast, but one of them often slips into the background: physical therapy. In this article, I’ll discuss whether physical therapy can be successful in treating erectile dysfunction, and why physical therapy works and why it doesn’t.
Physical therapy for erectile dysfunction rests on the notion that the muscles, nerves and blood vessels that produce erections must all function correctly for a man to have and retain an erection. These structures can be impacted by age, illness and lifestyle. By exercising and manipulating these structures, physical therapy seeks to make them function more efficiently.
Pelvic floor muscle exercises
Pelvic floor muscle exercises are among the most commonly used forms of physical therapy for erectile dysfunction. These exercises target the muscles of the bladder, bowel, and sexual system. Research has demonstrated that tightening these muscles can enhance erectile function in ED men. In a 2018 systematic review and meta-analysis in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, pelvic floor muscle exercises significantly improved erectile function in ED men compared with placebo.
Penile rehabilitation
Another form of physical therapy for erectile dysfunction is penile rehabilitation. It can be accomplished by vacuuming a genital or stretching your arm manually to draw blood to the tip of your genitals. The premise of this method is that when blood vessels in the penis are stimulated, they heal and replenish, resulting in better erectile function. A 2010 paper in the Journal of Sexual Medicine showed men who used a vacuum erection machine alongside oral medication performed better than those who relied on drugs alone.
Although these studies demonstrate the usefulness of physical therapy in preventing erectile dysfunction, results differ. A systematic review in the World Journal of Urology in 2017 concluded that evidence for physical therapy for ED is lacking. They observed that the studies were poor, and that no standardised guidelines for physical therapy treatments existed.
randomized controlled trials are one of the most difficult things to research when studying whether physical therapy helps with erectile dysfunction. As ED is highly subjective, blinding people or having a control group is difficult. Also, no protocols are standardised for physical therapy interventions so it’s hard to know how one study is going to compare results with another.
Another factor that can affect whether physical therapy helps with ED is the cause of the disorder. In men who experience ED due to pelvic floor muscle imbalance, physical therapy may be more successful than in men who suffer from ED due to a medical illness such as diabetes or cardiovascular disease.
Physical therapy can also involve education and counseling on lifestyle modifications.
1. Attaining and Maintaining a Healthy Weight.
Obesity is a well-known risk factor for a variety of diseases and conditions, including erectile dysfunction. It can affect hormone levels and circulation, two essential aspects of normal erectile function. Physical therapists can devise exercise programmes to suit the patient according to their fitness levels. These programmes can promote weight loss and overall fitness, as well as sexual health benefits. Cardiovascular, strength, and flexibility exercises should be built into the patient’s schedule for a successful effort at weight gain and weight loss to avoid ED.
2. Cessation of Smoking
A third reason for erectile dysfunction is smoking, as it damages blood vessels and reduces the flow of blood that can support an erection. This regimen encourages physical therapy patients to quit smoking. Thus, treatment education and individual therapist support will allow the patient to be offered drugs for quitting: nicotine replacement and behavioural change. Even comforting presentations about the pros of quitting, such as getting their erections back on track, can induce the patient to quit.
3. Reducing Alcohol Consumption
There is, of course, a documented correlation between alcohol and sexual dysfunction. Alcoholism lowers sexual performance. The physical therapist becomes responsible for teaching the patient what’s going to go wrong with sexual performance if excessive alcohol consumption continues. This can involve talking about being responsible, keeping track of alcohol, and reviewing healthier alternatives. These kinds of lifestyle adjustments will be easier to incorporate into a patient’s life, in conjunction with professional intervention, and may be geared toward improved erectile function.
4. More Physical Activity
The sedentary lifestyle is not a direct contributor to overweight alone, but it can also contribute to the severity of erectile dysfunction. Incorporating regular exercise can also potentially impact blood flow, hormonal stability, and general well-being-all of which translate into positive erectile function. They’re able to create an exercise plan consisting of pelvic floor exercises, cardio workouts and fitness for general health, all with the aim of increasing sexual health. Encouragement by the therapist to live an active lifestyle will also help to reduce one of the risk factors that can cause ED.
5. Stress Management
Stress and anxiety are some of the most popular psychological precursors to erectile dysfunction. One way in which stress management techniques could be applied to mental health and sexual function would lie in physical therapy. This would require classes in relaxation, breathing, and mindfulness meditation. It will teach the patient not only how to control his stress but also identify and correct potential ED triggers. This is a psychological complement to the physiotherapy method; taken together, they constitute an overall strategy to optimize erectile function.
Conclusion: Does Physical Therapy For Erectile Dysfunction Work?
To sum up, one of the most promising treatments for erectile dysfunction is physiotherapy. There is already a lot of evidence to show that pelvic floor muscle training, penile rehab, and lifestyle changes improve erectile function in ED men. Good studies are needed to confirm these early observations and establish consistent physiotherapy interventions. It’s also important to keep in mind that the reason for ED is also an aspect to take into account when measuring the results of physiotherapy. More is required to understand the role of physiotherapy in treating erectile dysfunction.
