Has anyone here ever suffered from ED and overcame it?

It is thus evident that ED is a harbinger for the presence of established co-morbidities in men, and the physical and laboratory screening should focus on the presence or absence of these disease states. Of 521 patients with ED examined for co-morbidities in a large sexual dysfunction clinic, 39% had hypertension, 37% were found to be hypogonadal, and 34% experienced medication-related ED. Sixty-eight percent were thought to have primarily organic etiologies, 8% psychogenic, and 24% mixed. Ninety-nine percent of those patients with hypogonadism had a concomitant medical condition.

THE RELATIONSHIP OF SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION TO CO-MORBIDITIES IN MEN

The major risk factors for ED have long been known and include diabetes mellitus, prostate disease, peripheral vascular disease, coronary artery disease, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and cigarette smoking. Lumbar disk disease and other neurologic risk factors, as well as obstructive sleep apnea and, finally, depression, can be added to this list. Clearly, ED is a symptom associated with the chronic medical conditions common in the primary care practitioner’s office.

Laboratory tests should include the following:

Serum glucose, creatinine, and lipid profile
Free testosterone or total testosterone (especially with the triad of hypogonadism symptoms: diminished libido, diminished energy, and fatigue)
Serum luteinizing hormone (LH) and prolactin levels if total testosterone is low, especially in an individual under the age of 50
Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels